Even Superheroes Need Help
by Samuri Rastafarian
Summary: rated for later chapters Things heat up between Raven and Cyborg. In the midst of their passion, the Teen Titans cross paths with SpiderMan, Venom, Carnage, Spawn, Wolverine, and many other legendary beings. The ultimate battle of Good vs Evil will soon c
1. Prologue

**What's up? This is my first Teen Titans fan fic. I am the Samurai Rastafarian. As I have mentioned in my profile, I like crossover fics, so this is as such. I hope you enjoy the first chapter. Read, relax, and please review. Enjoy!**

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**Even Superheroes Need Help**

**Prologue**

Deep within the busy complex that was S.T.A.R. Labs, Victor and Elinore Stone made their way into the main laboratory on notice of being called to that location. Elinor was a beautiful woman of African-American decent in her mid-40's. She was about 5' 7" in height, and had long, curly black hair with gray high-lights. Her eyes were a deep cashew, and her skin was a beautiful light brown.

Her son, Victor, was a towering 6' 2", and weighed over 230lbs, (and not an ounce was fat.) Save for his eyebrows, not a single hair was atop his head, and his eyes were blue, (unusual for his lineage.) While his mother wore a lab coat, black casual pants and high-heels, (all part of the dress-code in her work,) Victor wore a leather jacket over a white tank-top with black track-pants with red stripes down the sides, and black and blue high-top sneakers. Elinore was quite exited, for the reason they were called was the conclusion of a long-term research project. Victor, on the other hand, was far from exited.

"Tell me again," he said as he looked at his mother, boredom filled in his voice. "Why am I here?"

"Because," his mother said with a wide smile. "Your father's research on robotic limbs and my research on genome regeneration have both reached their conclusions and we want you to be there when we open the champagne." She then looked her son in the eyes. "Why aren't you exited, Victor?"

Victor lowered his head at first. He thought of a million reasons why he didn't want to be there. He only decided on a few, and let out a sigh of boredom and discomfort.

"For one, I really couldn't care less about science, and military research, and God knows what else you and dad do in this place. Two, I promised Steve that I'd help him work on his Shelby Cobra today, and three, I had football practice today, which started about ten minutes ago. And lastly, you_ know_ me and dad don't get along. The whole time he's been my dad, he hasn't called me _son_ once. And he's always giving me guilt trips about taking sports instead of working here." He once again lowered his head, this time shrugging his shoulders as well.

Elinore put her arm around her son's lower back, (since she couldn't reach his shoulders.)"I know it's hard, son," she said in empathy. "But your father loves you. He just get's a little...insensitive at times, that's all."

"Yeah, yeah..."

Soon, they arrived at the robotics center. Different kinds of machinery was everywhere, and scientists wearing safety glasses and gloves in addition to their lab coats moved about in all directions, some carrying papers and others carrying various lab equipment.

Amidst the working scientists was Victor's father, Silas Stone. He was man of average height in his early-50's. He was wearing the same attire as his wife, brown boots in place of high-heels, and had the scruffiest goatee anyone could see. He, with several other scientists, was typing on a large computer. The computer's monitor read several read-outs of robotic limbs, plasma cannons, and various other data. When he noticed his wife and son had walked in, he immediately dropped what he was doing.

"Elinore!" he excitingly said as he embraced his wife, she returning the embrace. "I'm glad you could make it. Come on, have I got something to show you."

Paying little and virtually no attention to his son, Silas led his wife through a different hallway. Not wanting to be left behind and mistaken for a lab assistant, Victor followed closely behind his parents. Soon, they ended up inside a room with cybernetic parts everywhere; hung on walls, scattered on tables, everywhere. Silas then pressed a button on one of the many control panels. This caused two steel doors to slowly open, steam emitting from them as they cracked open. When the steam cleared, a large, humanoid, robotic frame with what appeared to be a plasma cannon mounted on the right arm could be seen.

"What's that?" said Victor.

Silas was a bit startled, not realizing his son was right behind him. "This, Victor," he said as he rose his hand up the frame. "Is the future of military warfare. No longer will American soldiers have to die in combat at a foreign country when their fighting for their own. No longer will women have to lose their husbands and sons in a battle they can't see. And no longer will we be losing a fight because we lack the strength in numbers. With thousands of these suits, and your mother's genome research, we could have the first _real_ disposable army. Instead of wasting human lives to gain territory, we can send these cybernetic super-soldiers instead. A machine can be replaced; a human life can't."

Silas then let his shoulders sag, and then he let out deep sigh filled with grief. "If only my good friend Al Simmons was still alive today. He would've been blown away by this."

"Well, Victor," said a proud Elinore. "What do you " Victor said unenthusiastically.

"You think that's great," said Silas, unaware that his son wasn't the least bit interested in the project. "Wait until you see what's behind door number two."

Silas then made his way over to a different control panel. This one looked much more sophisticated than the other one did. First he did a retinal scan, then typed in the password, 'beyond-his-grasp'. As soon as he hit the return button, a small compartment on the panel opened up. A switch rose up from the compartment, and Silas threw it as soon as it rose. Just then, two more steel doors opened up. These doors took longer, since they were held shut with six mechanical locks that looked like each would need over 50lbs of plastic explosives to break through. Once the doors opened and the steam cleared, darkness was all anyone could see in that room. Some lights then flickered on, and a large cryogenic tube could be seen. Inside the tube was a sedated man, floating inside the liquids of the tube with a mask to help him breathe.

"This here," said Silas. "Is the one that made genome reconstruction possible. With his DNA, combined with nano-tech, bio-technology, and modern robotics, we can supply the military with countless cyber-soldiers. All we need now is sufficiant funds..."

Victor wasn't paying much attention to his father's little speech, mostly because he was trying to figure out who the person inside the tube was. He looked familiar to Victor; orange hair, thin but muscular body, and a _very_ ill-favored look. _'Were did I see this guy before?'_ he thought to himself. He remembered watching TV at one of his friends house. The show was called,_ Worlds Most Dangerous Supervillians_, and the one that got to Victor the most was the one who made number three in most people killed. Supposedly he had been doing it since he was ten years old. Then it hit him.

"Are you guys fucking nuts?!" yelled an angry Victor, making violent hand gestures and cutting off his dad's speech. "Do any of you pen-pushing jockeys know who this fool is?!"

"Kletus Cassidy."

Victor looked behind him and met eyes with a young, blonde haired, brown eyed woman wearing lab attire and a lab ID that read _Sarah_. "He's a serial killer and child molester," she said, her voice calm. "He's mentally unstable, extremely dangerous, unpredictable, and he likes to brag that he's killed more people than old-age."

"If you know he's dangerous, then why the hell is he here?" said Victor in Sarah's face.

"Simple." stated Sarah. "We need the genetic information from the alien creature that's bound to him. If we can successfully extract his DNA, it will take this project up more than just a notch."

"What if he wakes up?" said victor, obviously still upset.

"He won't wake up," said Sarah. "It would take an army alone to blow those doors open. The glass tube he's in is unbreakable, and we keep him sedated at all times. I assure you, there's absolutely _nothing_ to worry about."

One of the scientists lost their footing, fell to the floor and curled up into a fetal position. When everyone drew their attention away from Victor and towards the scientist, they noticed that he was shivering uncontrollably. Silas quickly rushed to his side.

"You okay, buddy?" he said with concern.

The scientist slowly looked up at Silas, his eyes struck with terror.

"I...forgot...to put the tranquilizer..."

He didn't need to finish his sentence to get his point across. Every head in the lab turned their attention to the tube. Sure enough, the specimen was awake. Once he realized he was inside a glass tube, he began thrashing about violently.

"Not to worry," assured Sarah holding her hands in the air to get everyone's attention. "Like I said before, the glass is un-"

_CRACK!_

The alarm sounded as soon as the glass was cracked. Some of the scientists fled in terror while the rest in the lab looked on in horror as Kletus continued to put bigger cracks in the supposedly unbreakable glass. Within a matter of seconds, he had already punched a hole big enough to put his arm through. The liquid contents of the tube poured out of the hole like blood would exit a split artery.

"Oh, shit!" Silas exclaimed as he quickly ran back to the control panel in an attempt to close the doors. As soon as he hit the switch, the doors slowly began to close. The doors were only a few feet apart when the tube finally shattered, spilling water and life supporting fluids out of the door's gap. Just when the doors were almost closed, Kletus leaped out but was thrown to the ground due the tubes still attached to his mask being pinched in the closing doors. He staggered to his knees, and quickly tore the mask off and ripped the feeding tube out of his throat. He coughed up blood a few times, followed by vomiting a disgusting green substance. He then took a quick glance around the room he was in. How he got there was beyond him, but he had to escape, and fast before a certain wall-crawler or lethal protector made it to the S.T.A.R. Laboratories on account of the alarm. He had to act, but he couldn't do it alone. He needed his other.

He needed Carnage.

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Cyborg flew off of his maintenance panel, or his bed, and landed face first to the rug-less floor. As he slowly regained his footing, using his bed to support himself, he checked what time it was inside his database.

"3:34 in the morning," he groaned. "Man, not again..."

Ever since Brother Blood had failed to destroy the city using that giant cannon made from Cyborg's blueprints, Cyborg had been tormented with nightmares of his last day being human. That was over a month ago, and every night since then had been restless. Before, it would only happen once or twice a month. But now it was happening every night, keeping him from getting enough sleep and rendering him virtually exhausted during the day. Although he kept his mechanical components clean, fully charged, and in perfect condition, his organic components still needed rest and nourishment in place of repairs. Nourishment wasn't a problem. It was only the rest.

"Well," he said to himself. "I can't go back to sleep, so I might as well go see what's on TV."

Cyborg left his bedroom and slowly made his way towards the living room of Titans Tower. He didn't rush because the clanking of his metal feet darting through the tower might have woken the other Titans, and since it was still early morning nothing good was on anyway.

"Maybe I could pop a movie in," he thought.

When Cyborg made it to the living room, he was a bit surprised to find Raven sitting at the couch reading one of her books. Something, however, was a little off. Upon further examination, Cyborg could see that Raven wasn't wearing her cloak.

"Couldn't sleep?"she said without a hint of any kind of emotion.

Cyborg just shrugged. "Yeah..."

"Bad dreams?" she said while turning another page.

"...Yeah," said Cyborg a little confused. "How did you know?"

Raven now closed her book and looked at Cyborg. "I'm an empath, remember?" she said with a tone as serious as her look. "Your nightmares have kept me awake for over a month."

Cyborg felt a bit responsible and a bit angry at himself for keeping other people awake on account of his nightmares. Just when he was about to apologize...

"Don't be sorry," she said. "It's not your fault other people's nightmares keep me awake."

Cyborg only nodded in response. He then made his way over and sat on the couch, sitting roughly a few feet away from Raven. He then leaned his head back, let out a sigh, and stared at the ceiling, losing all interest to watch TV. He just sat there for a while, until Raven made her way behind him. She then leaned her head over his face so she could look him in the eye. As she did this, her hair draped down the sides of her face like dark purple curtains. Cyborg was mesmerized at her eyes and ajna chakra reflecting in the moonlight coming through the windows. These eyes were different as well. Instead of her usual cold, blank, glaring eyes, these were caring, concerned, worried eyes. To Cyborg's surprise, she put her hand on the human part of his face.

"What have you been dreaming about?" Despite Raven's look, her voice was still the same, monotone vibration. Cyborg slowly stood up turned around so he could face Raven properly. He took in a deep breath.

"It's not really a nightmare," he said. "It's more like...like a bad memory that haunts you in your sleep. Something that scars you for life." He lowered his head. "Something you never forget...no matter how hard you try." He then looked back at her. "It's about my last day...being human."

Raven gave him a look that basically said 'Go on.'

"Well, it all starts with my mom and I. We're heading to S.T.A.R. Labs when..."

Cyborg's words were cut off by a beeping sound coming from his arm. This struck him and Raven as odd. _Who would be calling Cyborg in the middle of the night?_ Raven thought. Cyborg thought for a moment.

"Might be my grandpa," said Cyborg. "Probably not aware of the time change." Cyborg opened the panel on his arm and pressed the answer button.

"Hello?"

"_Vic? Is that you?"_ The voice sounded a bit exhausted but frantic at the same time.

"Uh, yeah. Who's this?"

"_It's me, Pe.....arker. S..de...an"_

"...What did you say?" The caller's phone was obviously cutting out.

"_Oh, gi...m...reak. Thi...iece of cra...n't working!"_

"What?"

"_...that better?"_

"Yeah, I can hear you now. Who are you, man?"

"It's me, Peter Parker!"

Cyborg face suddenly beamed with excitement. "Spidey? Oh, man! I haven't heard from you in a long-ass time! How you been?"

"_Look Vic, nothing would make me happier right now than reminiscing with you, buddy, but I don't have much time. I need a BIG favor of you. Can you meet me by the sixth pier at the docks?" _

"Yeah, no problem man. I'll be there in ten."Cyborg closed the panel on his arm.

"Who was it?" Raven asked.

"A good friend of mine," said Cyborg. "I gotta go pick him up. Wanna come?"

Raven shrugged her shoulders. "Might as well," she said. "I'm too hyped on your nightmare to go to sleep."

End Prologue

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** **Now I know most die-hard comic book fans will most likely scoff at this chapter, mostly because it drastically changes the mythos on how Victor Stone became Cyborg. I changed it for what I believe are good reasons. I figured that since this was a crossover, integrating the archetype and all, I might as well integrate the story as well. Please don't hate me. O.O **

**Anyway, I will update as often as possible. Take care.**


	2. Chapter One

**Chapter One**

**A Friend In Need**

The T-Car came to a screeching halt when Raven and Cyborg made it to the docks. Just as Cyborg was about to exit, he noticed Raven was a bit more pale than usual. She looked....scared. Cyborg immediately became concerned, for he remembered what happened last time Raven was scared.

"You okay, Rae?"

Raven slowly turned her head toward Cyborg, her eyes bigger than grapefruits.

"Cyborg," she started. "Don't you ever, **_ever_**, drive that fast again!"

Cyborg put his hand on the back of his head and let out an apologetic chuckle. It took at least 45 minutes to drive from Titans Tower to the Jump City Harbor, yet Cyborg made it there in less than ten.

"Sorry Rae. My bad."

Raven and Cyborg exited the T-Car and headed toward the sixth pier. The sixth pier was used strictly for recreational purposes, like lighting off fireworks, so it was always deserted at night. Both were on their guard, for the Jump City Harbor was easily one of the worst places to be, especially after midnight. It was a popular spot for the vermin of Jump City to congregate. Drug dealers and gang lords often used the empty warehouses for their bases of operation, and bikers sometimes used the empty piers for illegal street-racing. Not only that, but it was also a common place for members of the H.A.E.Y.P. to gather and discuss new plans for causing more trouble amongst the city. After about a five minute walk, they both made it to the sixth pier.

Nobody was there.

"Where is he?" asked Raven.

Cyborg looked in all directions, scanning movement and heat signatures as he went. "I don't see him...maybe he's not here yet."

"Maybe..."

"_Psst! Vic, over here!"_

Raven and Cyborg looked in the direction the voice came from. It was over the edge of the pier. They each peaked over the edge and met masked eyes with someone carrying a gym-bag while sticking to the side of the pier at the same time. The figure then crawled up the side and flipped himself over the top, landing on his feet behind Raven and Cyborg. The moon light revealed his red and blue suit, though it looked black and purple, but the web design looked constant.

"Hey, Spidey!"

"How's it hanging, Vic?"

Cyborg and Spider-Man did their own little 'secret-buddy-handshake' and went on from there.

"What's up, man?"

"Too much."

"How did you contact me, man?"

"The Fantastic Four lent me an old communicator before I left Manhattan. Lot of good it did. The piece of crap fried after you hung up."

"What did you do with it?"

"I chucked it in the water..." It was then Spider-Man noticed Raven. "Who's she?"

Cyborg broke eye contact with Spider-Man and looked at Raven. He then brought her over and introduced them to each other.

"Spidey, this is my friend Raven. Don't be put off by her Goth-like appearance. Rae, this is my buddy Spider-Man. Don't worry though; unlike Beast Boy, _his_ jokes are actually funny." Spider-Man held out his hand to Raven, expecting a friendly handshake.

"What's up?"

Raven just nodded her head. "Charmed." Spider-Man shrugged as if someone splashed cold water on him as he pulled his hand away.

"Damn! Hey Vic, is gonna snow soon? It just got cold out here."

"Hey," said Cyborg, changing the subject. "How's Mary-Jane?"

"She's doing great," said Spider-Man. "Thanks for asking."

"And Aunt May?"

Spider-Man lowered his head, his voice going low. "...Shepassed away."

Cyborg's face went from happy to upset. "Oh...sorry, man."

Spider-Man lifted his head back up. "Don't worry about it...Oh, and in case you're wondering, old JJ's still the same money grubbing, penny pinching, holiday hating, hero bashing, under appraising, cigar chomping cheapskate we all know and love, (yeah, right.)"

Cyborg let out a small laugh. "Some things never change, do they?"

"That they don't," said Spider-Man.

At this point, Raven was beginning to grow annoyed. "Look," she said to Spider-Man coldly. "You asked Cyborg to meet you here because you needed a favor. What is it?"

"Oh, yeah. That..." muttered Spider-Man as he rubbed the back of his head. "Well, I was wondering if I could hide-out at the Titans Tower for a few weeks."

Cyborg and Raven were both a little shocked at his request. Why would Spider-Man, one of the worlds greatest Superheroes, ask if he could crash with a bunch of super-teens? Further more, Raven wondered how he and Cyborg knew each other? And why did Spider-Man call Cyborg _Vic?_

"Why?" Raven asked.

Spider-Man took in a deep breath, but was cut off by Cyborg.

"Hold up," he said. "I can already tell that this is gonna be a long-ass story, so why don't we just head back to the tower and we can discuss things when it's light outside. Cool?"

"Sounds good," said Spider-Man. "I haven't had a decent sleep in two-weeks straight."

"Fine." said Raven.

Raven, Cyborg, and Spider-Man made their way over to the T-Car, keeping it silent the whole time. Raven already didn't trust Spider-Man, even though he seemed friendly enough. Terra seemed the exact same way, and look what happened there. Although she came through in the end, it still didn't help the fact that the Titans nearly lost their home, _and_ their lives. Not only that, but Starfire and Beast Boy weren't the same afterwards. Both of them lost a good friend that day. Starfire and Terra formed a good friendship when Terra ate Starfire's cooking...and actually _liked_ it.

Beast Boy and Terra became more than just friends. When Terra left this world, Beast Boy was devastated. He tried ignoring the pain by making himself more of a self-proclaimed 'bad-ass' after he fought Adonis. In the end, he just proved to be a more of a 'dumb-ass,' and had a huge mess to clean up in the tower.

Besides, why should she trust someone she doesn't even know, let alone hides their face under a mask? Not only that, but she had heard some pretty horrible things about everyone's favorite wall-crawler, courtesy of her Goth friends at the Dark Rose Café. Gossip was a popular content there, and Spider-Man was one of the most frequent of the discussions. It was always about his blunders in New York City.

Raven's train of thought was cut off by an outburst from Spider-Man.

"Whoa! Vic, is that your car?" he said excitingly.

"Hell yeah!" exclaimed Cyborg. "Made it myself, from the wheels up! Rae helped me build the new one after the first one got smashed."

"Bad-ass!" exclaimed Spider-Man. "Pop the hood! Show me what makes this kitten purr!"

"_Ahem..."_

Cyborg and Spider-Man met eyes with a glaring Raven.

"Whoa...on second thought," said Spider-Man. "Show me tomorrow. Let's go."

Each entered the T-Car, Raven riding shot-gun while Spider-Man sat in the back. Upon's Raven's earlier request, (or threat,) Cyborg drove the regular speed limit. They drove less than a few miles when Spider-Man removed his mask. His blood-shot eyes were surrounded by dark circles, and his unshaved face was quite a bit thicker than a five-o-clock shadow. His brown hair was badly matted, and his lips were chapped pretty bad. Cyborg and Raven both noticed his look via the rear-view mirror.

"Damn," said Cyborg. "You look like crap. What have you been doing?"

"Hey," said Spider-Man pointing his finger. "You try finding time to sleep when you're on the run from a psychotic killer who thinks he's doing the world a favor by ripping you apart; literally."

"Who's after you?" Raven asked, now curious.

"I'll give you both a hint," said Spider-Man. "What's six feet and nine inches tall, three and a half feet in shoulder width, was once part of me, has muscles that would make a heavy-weight boxer hide under a desk, jet-black skin, claws, freaky looking white eyes, a two-foot long tongue, razor-sharp fangs, a white spider-design on his chest and back, all my powers, is invisible to my Spider-Sense, wants nothing more than to make me bleed, and has an insatiable craving for human brains?"

Raven was perplexed. She had never even dreamed of something like that, let alone heard of one. Cyborg, on the other hand, knew _exactly_ who his friend was talking about.

"Venom..." he said in a low, deep voice.

"Survey says; DING, DING, DING! Cyborg wins!" Spider-Man said.

"Man, that fool don't let up," said Cyborg. "What's he after you for this time?"

There was silence. "Spidey?"

Cyborg's answer was a loud snore. Followed by another. And another. And another. And another..........

"Dammit," said an annoyed Cyborg. "Guess my question will have to wait until he wakes up. This dude can sleep through a train wreck. Once he falls asleep, there's no waking him up until _he_ wakes up." Raven was now getting restless. She had to make sure that Spider-Man was trust-worthy.

"Cyborg?" she started, looked at him.

"Yeah, Rae?" he said back, still looking at the road.

"How do you and Spider-Man know each other?"

"You remember where you first met me, right?"

"Hell's Kitchen, New York City."

"Yeah. That's where I first met Spider-Man. A super-villain called 'The Rhino' was robing a bank, and was making a not-so-clean getaway. I stopped the armored car, and Spider-Man webbed up the thugs. Thankfully, Rhino was dumber than Beast Boy on mushrooms, so we took him out easily. After that, we started hanging out; beating up bad guys, rescuing damsels, signing autographs, showing up at stupid public get-together's, the works. That year, he and his wife invited me to his aunt's house for Thanksgiving...heh...Aunt May, sweetest old lady you'd ever meet. Damn shame she passed on..."

"Stopping at the back robbery would have sufficed," Raven said. "Now answer my next question; can we trust him?"

Cyborg looked at Raven as if she had just asked him if he was really a bag of weasels inside a robot body being controlled by a psychotic Orlando Bloom fan-girl.

Stupid analogy, yes. But it works.

"Can we trust him?" he said. "Rae, I'd trust Spidey with what's left of my human life! Hell, I trust him almost as much as I trust you!"

These words caught Raven off guard. Cyborg trusted her? Despite the way she treated the other Titans at times, or the fact that her father was one of the thirteen sons of Satan?

"You...trust me?" she said nervously. "Even though I'm...I'm..."

"Part demon?" said Cyborg. "Rae, that don't mean a thing to me." His voice was beginning to sound so soothing to Raven that it caused tension to leave her body like water would leak from a cive. Just hearing his voice now did more than six straight hours of meditation would have ever done.Cyborg then pulled over to the side of the road so he could talk to her without looking at the road instead of her eyes. As he made eye contact with Raven, she noticed how sincere his look was.

"I trust you more than anyone else, Rae," he said. "Out of all the other Titans, you're the only one I can relate to the most. You're smart, you keep things simple and to the point, you deal with things like an adult would, you almost _never_ lose your cool, and unlike most people, you know what it's like to be considered a freak just because of the way you look, yet you put up with it like it's nothing! I know this may sound like I'm talking outta my ass, but I'm telling you the honest-to-God truth, Rae."

A strange feeling that Raven never felt before, or wouldn't let herself feel, began to flow through her like a roaring river after flood-gates were opened ...causing several lamp posts and phone booths outside to explode. Raven quickly shook the feeling away and went back to her usual, emotionless self before she blew up the car. Cyborg only smiled in response.

"Trust me, Rae," Cyborg said as he put his hand on Raven's shoulder. "Spidey would _never_ do anything of the back-stabbing sort. He just ain't like that." Cyborg thought for a moment, then burst out laughing. "Besides, he's a married man! His wife would skin him alive if he didn't remain faithful!"

Raven couldn't help but smile. Cyborg may not have been right all the time, (who is?) but she knew that he would never lie about something. Especially about something so serious. She leaned back in her chair and let out a sigh of relief. Now all that was left was to make it to the tower safely. Cyborg put his car back in gear and drove away to Titans Tower.

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Cyborg carried the sleeping Spider-Man like a sack of potatoes through the hallway, Raven walking along-side of him. It was now 5:26 A.M., and the pitch black, cloudless sky was now a lightening blue through the windows. Raven couldn't help but notice that Spider-Man's mask-less head was banging against Cyborg's metal body as he walked, yet he still slept. Soon enough, they made it to the living room. Cyborg went to place Spider-Man on the couch as Raven went to put her kettle on for her morning tea. Right when Cyborg was about to plop his snoring-superfriend on the couch, he saw something that he wasn't quite prepared for. He smiled and turned his head towards Raven's direction.

"Hey Rae," he whispered across the room. Raven looked back at him thinking something was wrong.

"What?" she whispered back.

"Come here an' look at this." Cyborg said as he made an 'over here' gesture with his hand.

Raven levitated towards Cyborg's direction in order not to make any noise. When she made it there, she saw what he was pointing out. Although Raven was usually appalled by anything cute, pink, fluffy, or anything to do with the word _cuddly_, even she couldn't help but give an uncharacteristic smile.

"Awww..." she cooed.

The sight they saw would even make an ice queen's heart melt like butter in a heat wave. Robin and Starfire were both laying on the couch, and practically on each other. Robin lay on his back with one arm around Starfire's shoulders and the other hanging limply over the edge of the couch, wearing his usual attire minus the cape. Starfire was laying on top of him while resting her head on his chest, her arms wrapped around his torso. To no surprise, an ear-to-ear smile went across her face.

"Guess we weren't the only ones that couldn't sleep," Cyborg said as he tossed Spider-Man on the couch, roughly eight feet away from the slumbering lovers. Amazingly, Spider-Man still slept through it, snoring even louder than ever now. After taking a mental picture of the snoozing love-  
birds, Raven and Cyborg walked over to the kitchen, Raven picking up the book before she left before they went to pick up Spider-Man. Cyborg, since he didn't feel like going back to sleep, decided to make himself a meat-rich breakfast before a certain green vegan woke up.

"You hungry, Rae," Cyborg asked as he got a few pans out of the lower cabinets.

"No, thank you,"said Raven as she sat at the reading her book. Cyborg was about to say 'suit yourself,' but was interrupted by a hideous, sickening, blood-churning growl emitting from Raven's stomach, causing her to drop her book, clench her stomach and cringe in pain.

"Damn!" exclaimed Cyborg as he shot his look from the refrigerator and over to Raven. "That sounded like a plague of frogs going through a meat-grinder the size of Detroit! You sure your okay?"

Raven still clenched her stomach as she slowly sat up. "Strange," she said weakly. "A second ago I wasn't the least bit hungry, but now I feel like I haven't eaten a thing in weeks..." Suddenly food sounded really good to Raven. "Cyborg," she said. "I think I will have something."

"Want anything in particular?" Cyborg asked. "I can make just about anything."

Raven thought about that one for a moment. She tried thinking of something she didn't have in a while. Then she remembered something she didn't have since she first became a Titan, which was almost three years ago.

"...Pancakes sound nice." she said. Cyborg gave a wide smile and cracked imaginary knuckles.

"Cyborg's homemade buttermilk pancakes, coming up!"

**End Chapter One.**

Yay! Nothing like a little bit of fluff to brighten up your day...okay, so the fluff didn't actually come in until the near end of this chapter, but give me a break. So, what did you think? I personally hoped you enjoyed it. Now, time to get started on the next chapter.

P.S., If any of you have any suggestions of how the other Titans should react to Spider-Man's presence, email me so I can read them over. I am very interested in your opinion. It helps me come up with inspiration. Although I have this story planned out, I am open to suggestions.

Also, to those Spidey/Rae fans out there, I am sorry to disappoint you. I will not pair those two together in this story. You have to realize, Spider-Man is an adult in this fic. You don't want him getting arrested for statutory rape, do you? Plus, he's married. His wife would put him through more Hell than any super-villain could ever dream of if Spidey cheated on her for a teenaged empath.


	3. Chapter Two

Hey everyone! Sorry I took so long with this chapter, but the holidays have been Hell on Earth for me, so I didn't have much time, ( or patience for that matter,) to work on my story. Before we begin, I'd like to reply to all those that reviewed.

**Vandagirl519: **I'd like to thank you personally thank you for the advice and the support you've given me. I'm glad that you don't like the idea of Spider-Man and Raven being a couple. ( I just can't picture them as a couple.) I am also glad that you enjoyed the story so far. Best of luck with your stories, and Chapter 2 is now up, so enjoy!

**blaze-firestorm: **I'm glad you like the analogies. You wanted more, and here it is. Enjoy!

**spergirl: **I made up the wayCyborg becomes Cyborg in this story. I know how he become Cyborg in the real comic books, but trust me, it's lame. Glad you liked the story. Here's Chapter 2, so enjoy!

**angelicdhampir2oo4: **I am very grateful for getting a 5 out 6 in star ratings from you. I understand that you appriciate a lot of detail. I apologize for the vague describtions of Spider-Man's suit and stuff like that. I figured that since the whole comic book world knows what he looks like, he wouldn't need much describing. You are also very welcome for the reviews I have given your stories, and am glad that you think my story is 'flubbing good!' I took your advice and did my bestin being more describtive. Enjoy the chapter, man!

**jbtheman: **I'm glad that you're not put off by me changing the mythos on Cyborg becoming Cyborg. Thanks for reviewing, and good luck with 'The Webs We Weave.'

**agehorn: **It's a shame that you couldn't read the comic books. I'm pretty sure you can find them somewhere on the Internet. You wouldn't believe some of the things you'd find, like Superman VS Mohammad Ali. (not joking)

**Jeff: **Thanks for reviewing man. I'm glad that you like my idea, and that you like the idea of Raven and Cyborg as a couple. Rock on, dude!

**

* * *

**

**Chapter Two**

**Houseguest**

As the sun shone through the windows of the living room, beams of golden light peering through the glass, a slumbering Starfire rose from her sleep. She yawned as she stretched out her arms, her crimson-red hair giving off a beautiful shine from the sunlight. After rubbing her eyes, she realized that she was straddling Robin's waist. At first, she couldn't quite remember how she got there. Then, she remembered the events of last night.

_**:FLASHBACK:**_

Starfire gently knocked on Robin's door. As she waited for an answer, she peaked down the dark hallways of Titans Tower. No reason in particular, but more because she simply needed something to occupy her mind while she waited.. Within a matter of momentsRobin had opened his door. As usual, he wore his trademark mask.

"Starfire?" he asked with concerned eyes under his mask. "It's 4:00 in the morning. What's going on?"

"Robin," she said with an apologetic tone. "I am sorry to disturb you so late in the evening, but I was wondering if you could assist me."

"What's wrong?" said Robin.

"I am unable to enter my sleep cycle," said Starfire. "No matter how much I try, I can not become fatigued enough to enter the dreaming state, and no matter which position I take in my bed, I am not able to become comfortable."

Robin smiled at Starfire's problem. Truth be told, he wasn't able to sleep either._Nice to know that I'm not the only one here, _he thought.He held up his index finger and said, "I know just the solution. Follow me, Star."

Starfire followed her good friend down the hallway, and eventually came into the kitchen. To Starfire's confusion, Robin pulled the milk carton out of the refrigerator and a small pot out of the cabinet.He set the pot on the stove and poured some of the milk into it.

"Robin?" Starfire asked, her head cocked slightly to the left. "Why are you heating up the dairy product known as milk?"

Robin smiled again as he turned on the burner the pot sat on. "When I was working along side Batman," he started. "I had trouble sleeping on a regular basis. To fix that problem, Alfred always brought me a glass of warm milk before I went to bed. I don't know why or how, but I always dosed off afterwards."

"I see," said Starfire.

Starfire waited patiently for Robin to finish heating up the milk while she went to sit on the couch. As she sat down, she quickly sat back up when she felt an object that didn't feel like the soft cushions. When she looked at where she sat, she noticed a leather bound book that looked like it belonged to Raven.

"Strange," she thought. "Raven never reads one of her books without putting it back when she's done..."

Just as she sat back down, ( this time not on Raven's book, ) Robin came with two glasses of warm milk. He sat next to Starfire and handed her a glass. She gave a grateful smile as she said "Thank you Robin." She then took a light sip, and almost immediately felt like falling asleep, but it wore off fast.

"So," Robin said as his sipped his glass, still looking at her. "Why haven't you been able to sleep, Star?"

Starfire took another sip and then made eye-contact with Robin. "I am not sure," she said.

"Have you been exercising enough?" Robin asked.

"Yes," said Starfire. "Just the other day, friend Cyborg and I each bench-pressed 4000 Earth pounds, and I ran six miles with friend Beast Boy."

"Whoa..." Robin said calmly, yet his eyes under his mask were big with amazement. "Okay...what about the stuff you eat?"

"I do not think that my eating habits are the cause," she said. "I do not recall eating or drinking anything in the past 48 hours that contained the stimulating substance known as caffeine."

"Well," Robin said with his chin resting on hand. He then looked back up at her. "...What about stress? Have you been worried about anything lately?"

Starfire used her free hand to wrap her thumb and index finger around her chin. She thought for a while about what she had been concerned about in the past few weeks. Then it hit her.

"Now that you have mentioned it," she said as she looked at him once more. "I have been very much concerned about friend Cyborg."

"Really?" said Robin as he took another sip of his warm milk. "Why?"

"Well," Starfire started. "For one, he can not concentrate on the video-game sessions with Beast Boy. He also sometimes burns his food when he cooks it, and he always appears exhausted when we all train together. And just the other morning, he skipped breakfast because he said that he was not hungry. Even after Raven and I had offered to make him his favorite breakfast, waffles with the syrup of maple and bacon on the side, he still said he wasn't hungry."

Robin's eyes went wide and felt like he was ready to enter a shock-induced coma after hearing Starfire's last statement. For as long as everyone knew Cyborg, he _never _turned down food, let alone waffles.

"That's pretty serious," he said. "Cyborg refused food? What's next? Ace Ventura get's arrested for animal cruelty?"

"I am not sure what you mean by that," said Starfire. "But I do agree that the situation with Cyborg is very serious indeed."

"Well," said Robin as he rubbed the back of his head. "What should we do?"

"I am not sure," said Starfire as she finished the rest of her milk.

Robin was just about to get up and take their empty glasses over to the sink, but was unable to when Starfire's head plopped on his lab.

"Uh...Starfire?"

Upon further examination, Robin could see that his milk trick had taken effect. Starfire was sound asleep. Robin tried to slip out and then carry her to her bedroom, but was unsuccessful when he accidently hit a reflex on Starfire's back, causing her to throw her arms around his torso. Robin was surprised at first, but got himself back together. He then tried to escape her grip, but for him, ( or any human for that matter, ) it was like trying to light a match in a hurricane.

"Well," he said under his breath. "Might as well get comfortable. Looks like I'm not going anywhere tonight."

_**:END FLASHBACK:**_

Starfire's face beamed with happiness as she recalled her conversation with Robin. She was more than grateful for Robin helping her sleep, and the warmth of his body heat was more comfortable than any mattress she ever slept on. Very carefully, she took Robin's face in her hands and rubbed her nose against his own.

"Thank you, friend Robin," she whispered. Starfire then heard voices coming from the kitchen.

"_Cyborg? I know that this will be my eighth helping, but can I have some more?"_

"_Sure thing, Rae."_

Starfire then smelled the aroma of flour, butter, milk, eggs, and a faint smell of nutmeg in the air. She also smelled the scent of the pork product known as bacon. She then heard Cyborg call out her name.

"Hey Robin, Starfire, you two awake yet?"

"Yes, friend Cyborg," she said happily as she looked over the couch. "I am now fully awake, but Robin is still slumbering."

"Well, that's good," said Cyborg with a smile. "You hungry? I made pancakes and bacon for everyone."

"Yes, please!" Starfire cooed as she flew to the kitchen. As she flew, (literally,) she didn't notice a snoring, mask-less wall-crawler sprawled about on the other end of the couch...

* * *

Beast Boy slowly sat up on the top-bunk in his bed. He let out a yawn as he stretched out his arms and legs. He got up out of bed and began his morning routine; selecting the least wrinkled shirt from his mountain of clean but unfolded clothes, finding a pair of pants in the same condition, applying some under-arm deodorant, and slipping into his shoes. He then popped in a few breath mints, then looked at the clock. 

"Ten o-clock?" he groaned. "Man, I over-slept again. So much for tofu eggs and Saturday morning cartoons. Cyborg probably slaughtered half-a-dozen pigs by now, and only the crappy shows are on now. Oh well..."

Beast Boy rarely thought of anything serious, save for the occasional life-or-death situation. He was, after all, the class clown of the team. Having a serious conversation with someone or saying something intelligent would put him _way _out of character. He had to stay his same, goofy self if he wanted to keep his character.

After all , it was the only thing he could do after losing Terra. He tried ignoring the pain, but it just made him lose sleep. He tried changing entirely, straying away from his normal self by eating meat and acting like a big shot, but that just cost him some of the respect he had with his friends, and he had a stomach ache from Hell afterwards.

So in the end, all he could do was move on and be the same, joking, bean-curd eating, mischief making prankster.

Shaking off the feeling, he went to his dresser and opened the top drawer. Inside was one of the few things that kept his mind occupied. He pulled the object out with care and precision, like a monk would remove the Bible from the podium. A wide smile played across his face as his eyes absorbed every square-inch of one of his most prized possessions.

The Collector's Edition Director's Cut of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas for the Sontega Gamestation.

"Awesome..." he whispered.

* * *

Starfire wiped her mouth with a napkin as she finished her last pancake. 

"That was lovely, friend Cyborg!" she exclaimed, bubbly as ever.

"It was good, Cyborg," said Raven, not so bubbly. ( At all. )

"Glad you two liked it," Cyborg said as he took the plates to the sink. Just as he was about to place them in the sink, he noticed the mountain of dirty dishes stacked in the sink and on the counter. Which was odd, since he'd been cooking all morning and only just now noticed them.

"Damn..." he said with big eyes. "Who supposed to do dishes this week?"

Starfire thought for a moment. "I believe it is friend Beast Boy's turn."

"What a shock," said Raven, monotone and sarcastic as ever. Cyborg shrugged.

"Well," he started. "Guess I'll go get-"

Cyborg's sentence was cut off by the blasting sound of Guns n' Roses _Welcome to The Jungle, _followed by gunshots, roaring engines, and expletive language. The three Titans looked in the direction of the sounds, and found Beast Boy sitting on the couch playing his favorite game. Apparently, he had already been there for some time. His eyes were glued to the screen, and the biggest grin anyone would ever see played across his face.

"Oh, great," sighed Cyborg. "Now he's dead to the world. Man, sometimes I regret buying him that game. Guess the dishes will have to wait..."

Beast Boy always had a bad habit of using more than one dish. Often he'd get a glass of soy milk, put the dirty glass in the sink, and then go get a fresh glass for more soy milk. He did this all the time, so there was no chance in Hell that Cyborg was cleaning up Beast Boy's mess. Many a time Cyborg told Beast Boy, _"If I wanted to clean up after something that liked pissing me off by making the biggest mess anyone could make, I'd get a really big dog and train it to do that!"_

Raven's feelings towards cleaning up after others that knew better were no different from Cyborg's. She felt that if someone was capable of walking, thinking, and fighting evil on a regular basis, they'd be able to clean up after themselves.

Then there was Starfire. She remembered when she first joined the Titans, she always wanted to help her friends with their chores. At first, her help was welcomed. However, she later learned that sometimes her friends needed to clean up after themselves. ( She had Robin to thank for that. )

* * *

Beast Boy tore through the computer-generated roads of Los Santos, the Grand Theft Auto answer to Los Angeles. He didn't really care for the game's missions at the moment, for he had just modified his favorite low-rider, the Savanna, and was content on flying up the highways and hitting anything that vaguely resembled a ramp. The game's radio station that he tuned into was none other than Radio X. It was the station he listened to the most, the others being K-DST and K-Jah WEST. Beast Boy was so enthralled in the game that he didn't notice Robin stir himself awake. 

Robin rubbed his eyes as Alternative Rock n' Roll from the early 90's blasted through his ears. The songs seemed to have gone from Guns n' Roses _Welcome to The Jungle _to Ozzy Osborne's _Hell Raiser. _To his dismay, Beast Boy was playing the game Cyborg got him for his birthday.

"Beast Boy," Robin grumbled. "Turn that down. I'm trying to sleep."

"Dude!" Beast Boy exclaimed with a grin, not taking his eyes off of the screen. "How can you sleep when one of the best games in the world is on right now!"

"Obviously I can't," Robin said as he stood up and stretched. "What time is it?"

Beast Boy didn't answer him. He was simply too enthralled into the game to tell somebody the time. Robin only sighed. As he looked up at the clock, something caught the corner of his eye. He also heard snoring over the sound of the game. Loud snoring at that. As he looked into the direction of the snoring, his face grew a look of bewilderment and confusion as he saw what was possibly the last thing he'd ever expected to see in Titans Tower...

* * *

Starfire, Cyborg, and Raven sat at the table, Starfire and Cyborg having a friendly conversation and Raven reading her book. Raven couldn't help but notice how Cyborg enjoyed Starfire's company. They acted just like a brother and sister would; a few laughs, a few cries, a teaching here, a lecture there, and the occasional argument. Luckily, they never argued about anything important. Their conversation went well...until Starfire asked Cyborg a _if words could kill _question. 

"Friend Cyborg?" she asked with innocent eyes.

"Yeah Star?" Cyborg said as he put his hands behind his head.

"I was wondering," she started. "For the past few weeks, you seemed to be quite exhausted. May I ask what is wrong?"

Cyborg shrugged. "Bad dreams, is all."

"Oh..." said Starfire. "What kind of bad dreams?" Raven now drew her eyes away from her book and towards Cyborg's face. She could see clear as crystal that Cyborg didn't want to talk about his nightmares. Not to her, not to Starfire, or anyone for that matter. Cyborg was looking around the room while trying to think of a way to change the subject. Just then, Robin walked in on them.

"Uh, guys?" he said. Starfire immediately drew her attention towards Robin, causing Cyborg to let out a sigh of relief. Starfire flew from her chair and greeted Robin by giving him her infamous iron-grip hug. Robin did everything in his power to try and breathe.

"Good morning, friend Robin!" she beamed. "How are you this lovely morning?"

"Just fine, I guess," he said as Starfire released him. Starfire notice an unusual tone in Robin's voice. She was instantly concerned, for Robin usually wasn't troubled about anything unless it was very serious.

"Robin," she said. "You seem troubled. Whatever is the matter?"

"Well," Robin said as he stroked his chin. "Would any of you mind telling me why there's a homeless guy dressed like Spider-Man sleeping on the couch?"

**End Chapter 2**

Sorry 'bout the cliff hanger everyone, but if this chapter were any longer it would have just gotten boring. Now, ( stares at computer screen) must make Chapter 3!


	4. Chapter Three

**Well, I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that All your Pie was reported and deleted. They said it was because of plagarism. The good news is that chapter three for E.S.H.N.H (Even Superheroes Need Help) is finally here. Enjoy!**

**Oh yeah. And I'm sorry if this chapter seems a bit rushed towards the end. I was starting to get real impatient and I just wanted to get it done. Anyway, please read and review. Enjoy. (wait, I already said that.)**

**Chapter Three**

**Feeling Right At Home**

"_Oh, crap," _thought Cyborg with wide eyes as he fidgeted about. _"I forgot that I put Spidey on the couch!" _Cyborg searched his thoughts for a quick explanation to why Spider-Man was in the tower, but couldn't find one. Raven nearly drowned in her tea after hearing Robin's question, for she was far too busy reading her book, spending the morning with Cyborg, and enjoying enough pancakes to feed a small army to remember that one of New York City's greatest and most controversial superheroes was lounging on the couch. Starfire was confused as ever. She hadn't the slightest idea what a 'Spider-Man' was. To her, she pictured a Fang look-a-like inside the tower, but also pictured a homeless man wearing a T-shirt that simply read 'Spider-Man.' Cyborg finally decided to just let it out in a plain and simple fashion.

"Rob," he started. "That's no homeless guy dressed like Spider-Man. That _is_ Spider-Man."

At first, Robin didn't know exactly what to say or do. Spider-Man? In Titans Tower? Something was wrong with this scenario here. Why would somebody like Spider-Man visit Titans Tower, or Jump City for that matter? He raised an eyebrow at Cyborg, then made his way over to the couch, where the oblivious Beast Boy still didn't notice the snoring web-slinger. Cyborg, Raven, and Starfire followed quickly behind Robin. Robin closely examined Spider-Man, from head to toe. He then looked over at Cyborg.

"This is Spider-Man?" he asked.

"Yeah," said Cyborg in an assuring tone. "Why?"

"Well, he looks kinda..." Robin looked back at Spider-Man and mentally searched for the least offensive word to describe his condition. "...scruffy." Robin's face then turned a tint of blueish-green as he sniffed the air. "And he smells like vomit."

"Yeah, he's had a rough week." said Cyborg. Robin looked confused at the moment, which was a rare occasion for the Boy Wonder.

"You know him?" he asked in a curious tone with his arms folded.

"Yeah, me and him are old buddies," said Cyborg. "He called me last night and said that he needed a place to crash for a while. I told him that it was cool with me if it was fine with everybody else."

Before Robin could react, the all-too-familiar sound of the alarm sounded through the tower. Despite the wailing sound and the red flashing of the siren throughout the tower, Beast Boy still wasn't drawn away from the game. The rest of the Titans only sighed in disgust.

"C'mon," Cyborg said hastily and annoyed at the same time. "We can see what's going on from the computer in my room."

The Titans that were still tuned into reality rushed down the hallway, following Cyborg to his room. In a matter of seconds, they each stood in front of a large monitor while Cyborg punched in a few letters and numbers to see what the problem was. The monitor had shown an unknown assailant clad in red and yellow was robbing the Jump City National Bank, and that he had taken hostages.

"This is serious," uttered Robin in a low voice. Without hesitation, Robin darted towards the living room. The other Titans followed closely behind, and found Robin trying in vain to get Beast Boy's attention. He tried everything; yelling in his ear, stomping on his foot, waving his hands in front of his face, pulling a fog-horn seemingly out of nowhere and blowing it in his ear, even threatening to pull the Gamestation's plug.

Nothing worked.

"Leave him," Raven said flatly. "He's lost in his own world right now. If we don't hurry, the guy robbing the bank will escape." Robin let out an annoyed sigh and took Raven's advice. He shot one last irritated look at the mesmerized Beast Boy before taking his leader's stance.

"Titans, GO!"

* * *

"Hurry up, ya maggots! We ain't got all day!" 

The thugs followed the orders of their leader without question. Their leader was a brute of a man nearing 6' 5", and had an accent that clearly stated that he grew up in Brooklyn. His outfit was a bit outrageous for a villain. He wore crimson-red pants, boots and a vest of the same color, and a yellow quilt-like shirt that had a pattern similar to the skin of a diamondback rattlesnake. He also wore a mask of the same design, with white eye-pieces to see through. His weapons consisted of two silver gauntlet-like gloves and anklets.

"Hey, boss!" yelled one of the thugs as he ran into the building.

"What?" yelled the said person.

"It's those kids we read about before we got here! They're outside right now!"

The man only sneered at his henchmen's statement. _Go figure, _he thought to himself. _I thought I got away from this kinda crap when I left New York! Ain't no breaks for Herman Schultz, are there? _

"What are we gonna do, boss?" the thug asked frantically.

"Listen up!" exclaimed the leader of the operation. "You guys take the hostages and get all the cash we got now and wait for me in the back! _I'll _take care of those super-punks!" His men did exactly as he instructed. No sooner than the last man left, the main entrance was kicked open. As the assailant turned his head in the direction of the commotion, he met eyes with the team leader. He also got a glance of the others as well. One was a flying red-head wearing an outfit that looked like an old costume from some lame futuristic flick. The second was a Shaq look-a-like, save for the fact that he was half robot, and that the real Shaq was at least a foot taller. The last was some Goth chick in a black leotard and a blue cloak.

"So," he scoffed as he turned completely in order to face his opponents. "You must be the Teen Titans."

"That's us," said a kid wearing a domino-like mask. "And who are you? The Diamond Backed Dork?"

"I'm The Shocker," the man said calmly. "I'd tell you _and_ your punk friends not to forget it, but none of you are gonna be alive long enough to worry about it!" Just then, his hands began to glow a bright white. A loud humming sound was heard, followed by him thrusting his arms forward and sending a radio wave-like beam speeding towards his adolescent foes. But instead of hitting them, like they expected, it hit the wall behind them, causing it and sections of the ceiling to collapse down on top of his would-be adversaries. Before anyone could react, the Titans were engulfed in concrete and a cloud of dust. As the dust cleared, nothing was seen, and all that was left of the north side of The Jump City National Bank was a pile of rubble. The Shocker only chuckled proudly at his efforts as he cracked his knuckles and popped his neck.

"Piece a' cake," he said. "Looks like I'm catching a break after all."

The Shocker turned away from his opponent's unmarked graves and made his way towards the exit. It was a great day for him and his gang. Lot's of stolen money, the famous Teen Titans were destroyed by his hand, and there wasn't a single web-slinger within a thousand miles to foil his plans. But just when he thought that nothing could possibly go wrong, a rumble was felt beneath his feet. Fearing the worst, he turned in the direction of the debris that was once the front of the bank. The entire pile was now enveloped in black energy, and every piece was suddenly flung in every direction. The Shocker managed to destroy the debris that were hurtled towards him with relative ease, save for one piece of concrete roughly the size of a softball that clocked him right between the eyes. Though it caused him to lose balance, it didn't phase him enough to lose his focus.

"Ow..." he said dryly as he rubbed his forehead. When he finally came to his senses, he learned that he wasn't getting his break after all. Standing before him were the Teen Titans, none bearing even the smallest scratch. Much to his dismay, the one wearing the mask was rubbing his chin and had a look on his face as if somebody had asked him a stupid question.

"So," the Bird Boy said . "You're called The Shocker, but you don't use electricity...I don't get it."

"If that's all you got," said the half-robot. "You might as well just fall down and give up."

"Dammit..." The Shocker muttered under his breath. He really hated it when people didn't get why he was called The Shocker. Anyone who took basic geology would know that his gloves were used to produce powerful shockwaves through whatever he hit with them. Still, that was the least of his worries at the moment. Right now he needed to figure out how he was going to defeat these super punks and how he was going to escape before an army of cops arrived at the crime scene.

"This just ain't my day..."

_**Meanwhile, back at Titans Tower...**_

"_Ugh...crap. Where am I? And what's that God-awful noise?"_

Peter Parker uncomfortably rose from his slumber. He had been sleeping peacefully for nearly six hours, and now he was given a rude awakening by some nerve-racking Rage Against The Machine song. As he sat up, his eyes peeled themselves open, though it seemed like they were being pried open by a crowbar due to the fact that he was still dead tired. His vision was fuzzy at first, barely making out the shape of a U-shaped couch and someone sitting on it. After about a minute, his vision cleared. He could clearly see that he was in a large living room, and the person on the couch was none other than the wise-cracking, shape-shifting Beast Boy. Then it hit him.

"Heh, I'm in Titans Tower," he said aloud. As he swung his legs off of the couch, his feat hit something that felt like a sack of dirty laundry. As he looked over to see what It was, he saw that it was his gym bag. "Vic must've brought it up," he thought. As he stood up to take his morning stretch, he felt an unbearable pain in the pit of his stomach, signifying that the noise wasn't the only thing that woke him up.

"**_Man, _**I'm hungry!" he said. "Hey kid, where's the kitchen?"

There was no answer.

"Um...hello?" he said as he waved his hand In front of the green teen's face. Still, there was no response. "Okay...never mind," he said cautiously. "I'll, uh, go find it myself." At first, Spider-Man was in a bit of a dilemma. His knowledge of the Teen Titans' base of operations matched his skill in the culinary arts, which were so bad that he couldn't even spread peanut butter without tearing the bread in half. With that said, it would prove problematic to find the kitchen by himself. His problem, however, was instantly solved as soon as he noticed that the living room was melded with the kitchen. The second he spotted the refrigerator, he leaped over the couch and darted towards the 'fridge. His hand was less than an inch from the door handle when he suddenly stopped in his tracks. Even though he felt hungry enough to eat a grilled great-white shark, he would be in vain if cooking was involved. He took a deep breath.

"Here goes..."

He slowly opened the refrigerator door, almost as if he were expecting some kind of monster or a Xenomorph to leap out and bring him to his doom. All of his tension, however, vanished instantly once he discovered that the Teen Titans' refrigerator was the equivalent to leftover heaven.

"Hallelujah!" he exclaimed.

Beast Boy's luck with his game was changing for the worst. He had a five-star wanted level, and the only weapons he had were a shot-gun and a baseball bat. His armor was gone, he was on-foot, and his health was dropping like brick. He was surrounded by cops, and soon enough the word 'WASTED' was played across the screen as CJ dropped to his knees and to his death.

"Crap..." said a mournful Beast Boy. "Maybe I should give this game a rest? I'm getting kinda hungry..."

Beast Boy sat his controller on the floor and made his way towards the kitchen craving a triple tofu burger with lettuce, onions, tomatoes, kosher pickles, and lactose-free cheese. Once the 'fridge was in his sight, he noticed that someone was raiding it. The open door was blocking whoever it was, so Beast Boy figured it was either Robin or Cyborg. After all, who else could it be?

"Hey dude?" he said as he removed a pan from the bottom cupboard. "Could you get the tofu out for me? I'm gonna make some-"

The 'fridge raider closed the door and looked upon Beast Boy. Judging from the 16 piece bucket of Popeye's fried chicken under one arm, the boxes of shrimp-fried rice and extra spicy Mongolian beef in the other arm, and the slice of Pizza Hut's meat lovers pizza hanging out of his mouth, his eating preferences and habits were similar to Cyborg's. That, however, was irrelevant at the moment. With Beast Boy being Beast Boy, he let his imagination get the best of him.

"Aaagghhh," he screamed. "It's a member of the Scruffy Spider Ninja clan and he's come to rid the world of vegetarians, vegans, and animal rights activists!" Beast Boy, without looking, opened a drawer and pulled out an object that he planned on using for a weapon and pointed it at his opponent. "Stand back dude! I'll cut ya!"

Spider-Man looked on in confusion. He set all of his food on the counter and faced the lean green teen. He then scratched the top of his head.

"Okay," he finally said. "First off, you've been watching too much anime and playing too many video-games. And second, how exactly do you plan on cutting me with an ice-cream scoop?"

To Beast Boy's dismay, his opponent had a good point. "Ice-cream scoop?" he said confused and frantic. "I thought I got a knife..."

* * *

"Well, that wasn't so bad," Cyborg said as he brushed the dust from his frame. "I told you that guy was a pushover." 

"Could've been worse, Cyborg." Robin pointed out. "A lot worse."

"But it wasn't," corrected Raven, using her usual blunt tone. "We beat The Shocker, and he's on his way to jail. As our leader, you need to stop exaggerating the scenario."

"She's right Rob," Cyborg said as he lightly elbowed Robin in the shoulder. "You really ought to stop seeing things for what they could have been and start seeing things for what they are; we beat The Shocker, the money was returned, he and his thugs are going to jail, and Beast Boy's gonna get the beating of his life for ignoring us at the tower. Now let's get our butts outta here before a million reporters come and start asking us a million questions we don't know the answers too!"

Cyborg had a point. If there was one thing Robin hated more than an unfinished job, it was the media asking millions of unwanted questions, (particularly in his relationship with Starfire.) Without hesitation, each Titan quickly entered the T-Car and headed back to Titans Tower. Raven rode shotgun while Starfire and Robin sat in the back. As they drove, Robin thought about what Raven and Cyborg said to him as he rested his arm on the open window. As long as he could Remember being leader of the Teen Titans, he was a bit overbearing at times; a habit no doubt inherited from his old-time-mentor. He also took certain things a bit too seriously, like waking everyone up at seven o'clock A.M. on Sunday morning for physical training.

'_Maybe they're right,'_ he thought. _'Maybe I should lighten up a bit...'_

"Robin?"

Robin drew is attention from outside of the car and met eyes with a concerned Starfire.

"I'm sorry to have disturbed you," she said with a voice that matched her look. "But you're right arm has been damaged during our battle with The Shocker. Do you mind if I examine your injuries?"

"Uh, yeah," said Robin, still half lost in his thoughts. "Sure thing Star."

Starfire gently took Robin's arm in her hands as he continued to look out the window. He didn't receive any serious injuries; just a few bruises and a couple scratches. Nevertheless, it was more than enough to worry Starfire. As Robin continued to watch the world go by, (what else can you do while riding in the back seat,) he suddenly felt something soft and slightly moist touch one of his bruises. His head quickly shot in his arms direction, and his heart jumped to his throat once he realized that Starfire was kissing each of his bruises.

"Uh...St-Starfire?" he managed to say through compressed lungs. "Wh-what are you doning...daning. DOING! What are you doing?"

"I'm sorry if I offended you," said Starfire. "But it has come to my attention that on this planet mothers often kiss their children after they have been hurt. I assumed that this method had some kind of healing factor. I guess I was wrong..." She lowered her head, slightly ashamed. As usual, Robin was quick to solve the conflict. He smiled as he gently lifted her head back up by placing his fingers under her chin.

"It's okay, Star," he said. "I'm not offended or anything. You just startled me. That's all. Besides, it actually felt kinda...nice."

Starfire returned Robin's words with a big smile. "I'm glad to be of service."

Soon enough, they made it back to Titans Tower. An exhausted Cyborg put the T-Car in park and exited in a clumsy fashion. Raven was the only one that noticed, mostly because she was the only one who was paying absolute attention to him at the moment. Robin and Starfire were to deep into their conversation to notice Cyborg's clumsiness. Once Robin realized that the car was stopped, he took the initiative.

"Okay team," he said to the group. "Let's get upstairs and discuss the situation with Cy's hibernating arachnid friend."

"That 'hibernating arachnid' has a name, you know," Cyborg spoke in a slightly defensive tone. Realizing that he pushed the wrong button with Cyborg, Robin turned and faced him.

"Look Cy," he said. "I know he's your friend and all, and I didn't mean to sound like I don't care. It's just that I've heard way to many bad things about Spider-Man to let him stay here without giving it some serious thought."

"And what?" Cyborg said. "You believe everything you hear? What if I told you that Batman and Johnny Storm, or The Human Torch, or whatever the hell he calls himself were lovers? Would you believe that too?"

"Something like that is just stupid. The things I heard about Spider-Man were convincing enough for me."

"Oh yeah, 'Doc Ock and Spider-Man rob national back, even though anyone with half a brain would realize that Spidey was trying to stop him.' Yeah, _real_ convincing Rob."

At this point, Robin was starting to get angry with Cyborg and his sarcasm.

"Are you being funny?" Robin said, pointing a finger at Cyborg. "If you are, say so, because I'm not laughing."

"I don't need to be funny!" said a now angry Cyborg. "Your scrawny ass in that ballerina suit that you ironically call an outfit is enough to make _everybody _laugh!"

"Yeah? Well at least I _have_ a body to wear clothes in, you Terminator throw-back!"

Now that Robin had crossed the line, Cyborg was furious.

"Alright, punk!" Cyborg said as he took a fighters stance. "You're going down now, Bird-Boy!"

"Bring it on!" Robin bellowed as he drew a birderang. Just when they charged each other, Cyborg was gripped by one of Raven's trapping spells and Robin was pinned to the floor by Starfire. Though both Robin and Cyborg struggled to get free, they were both in vain. The spell that Raven used could hold King Kong in place, and Starfire was almost ridiculously stronger than Robin.

"Please stop!" Starfire pleaded. "Please do not fight! Do either of you not remember the events that took place the last time you fought?"

"_Oh, dudes, you're back! Where were you?"_

Every one turned their heads in the direction the voice came from, and met eyes with none other than Beast Boy. To no surprise, he was still completely oblivious to what was going on.

"Look, Beast Boy," Raven said as calmly as she humanly could. "Now is not the time for you or any of your stupid jokes. Robin and Cyborg are _very_ angry with you for ignoring us, so get out of here before Starfire and I let them go."

"Hey, chill out!" Beast Boy said with his hands in front of him. "I'm just down here 'cause Spidey wanted to give Robin something."

This statement made everyone wonder. "Give me something?" Robin said, confused as ever. "Like what?"

At this point, Raven and Starfire let Robin and Cyborg go. Beast Boy walked up to Robin while digging in his pockets.

"Where'd I put it? Ah, here it is."

Beast Boy pulled out a wrinkled wad of money, no doubt caused by him simply stuffing it his pocket. As Robin took the cash and carefully unfolded and unwrinkled it, he revealed it to be six one-hundred dollar bills.

"Why's he giving me six-hundred bucks?" said Robin with a raised eye-brow.

"Uh...let me think for a minute..." Beast Boy said while scratching the back of his head. "Um...uh...now I remember! He ate all the food in the tower, except the tofu, he used up eight bars of soap and two bottles of shampoo in his shower, some of your deodorant, and some of that...stuff. You know, the pink foamy stuff you put in your...trapping...bomb...things with that stuff that makes it so you can't move..."

"What?" said Robin. "What was he doing with my trapping foam?"

"There's no shaving cream in the tower," said Beast Boy. "He had to improvise."

"...where is he now?"

"He's upstairs playing Metal Gear Solid 3...oh crap! I'm missing his boss fight!"

Beast Boy changed into a cheetah and dashed back the way he came from. The other Titans followed as closely behind as possible, though none of them could actually keep up with him. Eventually they made it back to the living room, where an eager Beast Boy was cheering on a now invigorated and clean-shaved Spider-Man pounding buttons on the gamestation controller. Now, however, he wasn't wearing his costume. This time he was wearing a New York Jets jersey, grey jogging pants and a pair of...white bunny slippers?

"Robin?" Starfire asked. "Is it still necessary to discuss the Spider-Man's business on staying here?"

"Robin only shrugged. "Seems pretty pointless now," he said. "Looks like he's feeling right at home."

**End Chapter Three**


	5. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

**Why I'm Here**

It took a little while, but things finally settled down between Robin and Cyborg. Spider-Man, or Peter Parker, had quit his video-game and was now socializing with Starfire and Beast Boy. He spoke mostly of his wife, Mary-Jane Watson, and how she would kill him for not telling her where he went, or that he even left for that matter. They had some conversations, exchanged life stories, and shared some jokes. The other Titans were sitting on the couch with Parker and his listeners, throwing in a comment once in a while. After some friendly converse, it was time for Robin to set one thing straight.

"Okay, Spider-Man," Said Robin as he leaned forward in his place on the couch. "I can see you've made yourself comfortable, so I not gonna throw you out. Besides, any friend of Cyborg's is a friend of mine. But I just want to ask you a few questions."

"Okay," Parker said as he rested his hands behind his head in relaxation. "Then shoot."

"First question; where'd you get all that money you gave me?"

"I'm friends with the Fantastic Four," said Parker. "Before I left New York, I asked him if he could spot some food money for the trip. I was only expecting him to give me about 300 bucks at the most, and he gives me a briefcase filled with 50$ bills instead. Heh...and I thought they were supposed to be non-profit."

"Okay, second question," said Robin. "I know you have a lot of enemies, but I also know you've got a lot of friends, too. I mean, why not hide with, uh, the Avengers, or the Fantastic Four, the Justice League, X-Men, or even the A-Team? Why pick Titans Tower?"

"First off," Parker said as he sat back up, putting his hands in his lap. "The Justice League aren't my friends. Batman and Green Lantern think I'm a hoodlum in spider-webbed pajamas and both Wonder Woman and Hawkgirl think that I like to peek at girls undressing in locker rooms. Second, I can't stay with the A-Team because I already owe Mr. T a thousand favors and a lawnmower...and a new front end for his van, but that's a completely different story. And lastly, I can't stay with any of the other teams you brought up because those are some of the first places Venom would look. He won't look here because he doesn't know that I'm friends with Vic...or Cyborg, as you guys call him."

"There's another thing. Who's Venom, and why's he after you?"

Parker didn't say anything at first. He put one hand on the back of his head and thought for a moment. "Well...he's after me because...ah, screw it. It's better if I just show you."

Parker then began to rooting through his gym bag, tossing out an article of clothing once in a while. The Teen Titans, except Cyborg, looked on in wonder.

"I know I brought it. Where the h-..ah, here it is."

Parker then pulled out a video-tape that simply read _'Play Me.'_ "This was mailed to my apartment about three days before I bounced out of New York." he said. He stood up and walked towards the VCR. As he did so, everyone couldn't help but stare at his ridiculous choice of footwear. Just when he was about insert the tape, he paused for a moment.

"Now look," he said as he turned his head to face the Titans. "There's some pretty freaky stuff on this tape, so for you timid ones or those of you with sensitive stomachs may want to leave room."

"Really?" Beast Boy said, gaining a big grin on his face and taking a crouching position on the top of the couch. "Will we see, like, some weird black and white pictures of ladders, and flies, and breaking fingernails, and then some girl falling in a well? And then will the phone ring and some scratchy voice will tell us that we'll all die in seven days?"

This caused everyone in the room to give a very annoyed stare at the shape shifter. Even Starfire didn't look the least bit amused at his joke. Beast Boy, realizing that now wasn't the time for jokes, gave a sheepish smile.

"Um...not funny?"

Parker sweat dropped. "...No," he said flatly as he pushed the tape in the slot of the VCR and sat back down at the couch. "Just watch."

At first, the screen was blank. The Teen Titans, especially Robin, watched in wonder at who or what this 'Venom' character was. All, that is, except for Cyborg. Just then the screen flickered to life, revealing a man in his late thirties sitting in a rundown apartment facing the camera. Robin began to examine every aspect of the picture that was shown. The camera didn't move an inch, so it was obviously sitting on something. An open window in the room showed a view of the Golden Gate Bridge shrouded in fog, distinctively pointing out that the tape was made in San Francisco; a city less than an hour's drive from Jump City. While Robin's detective side noticed every nook and cranny in the picture, the man himself was what everyone else payed attention to. He was _huge_. He was nearly seven feet tall, and had a body that would put professional body builders to shame. He had long, blonde hair with red highlights and a soulpatch of the same color. He wore a gray tank-top that said _lethal justice for all,_ as well as a black leather jacket, dark blue jeans, and gray high-top sneakers. His most distinctive feature, however, were his dark, dominating green eyes.

"Spider-Man," the man said, his deep yet smooth voice betraying the fact that he was trying to control his anger. "I'm sure you know why I've sent you this tape. But knowing you and your vindictive, backstabbing personality, you've probably forgotten by now. If that's the case, then allow me to refresh your memory."

The man reached into his pocket and removed a wadded up piece of cloth. After giving it a few lashes to the nearby end table, it was revealing to be a blood-stained mask.

"_That looks like the mask that Spider-Man wore at the docks," _Raven thought.

"I found this mask in the cold, dead fingers of my wife," the man continued to say. "Unless there's two scum-bags with masks like this, then this can only mean one thing..."

The man then slowly stood up, still holding the mask and still in the camera's full view. At first, he did nothing, save for standing tall. He took in a deep breath, and then threw his whole upper body backwards as he let out a scowl of pain. All of a sudden hideous cracking sounds could be heard as black, slime-like tendrils emerged from his back and began to quickly engulf his body. Soon his body was changed from his clothed form to a freakish monster with jet-black skin and a white stylized spider on his entire torso and back. Fingers were replaced with claws, and his head was swallowed by a mouth lined with fangs that seemingly grew from his shoulders. At first, his head was nothing more than a black blob sitting on a human neck. Just then, the bumps began to smooth themselves out as eyes that resembled white flame formed from his face. In addition to that, his upper and lower jaw began to extend themselves, reaching proportions that defied the laws of human physics. As he opened his new mouth, four inch long fangs emerged from his gums, and a serpent-like tongue grew from the back of his throat and licked his saliva covered teeth clean. Thus the man was no longer human. He had become San Francisco's Lethal Protector and one of Spider-Man's worst nightmares; Venom.

"It means that you betrayed us again, Wall-Crawler," he said, his voice now deep, raspy, and guttural. "In a sense, we shouldn't be the least bit surprised. You never were good at keeping promises, let alone fulfilling you're end of a deal. The deal was that you stay in Manhattan while we went back to San Francisco and out of each others lives. But you couldn't have that, could you? _Could you?_"

It was obvious that Venom could no longer hold his anger in.

"What did you think we would do after you murdered our wife? Did you think that we would sit in the corner of some God-forsaken pit and mope for the rest of eternity while you bask in your sick circle of victory?"

He then paused for a moment. His jaw took a form that vaguely resembled a smile as a few chuckles escaped from his vocal cords.

"Once again, you're wrong, little spider. For this heresy, you will pay dearly for what you have done to us. For what you've done to our wife. We're coming for you, Spider-Man. And when we find you..."

The monster, or symbiote, that was bound to him subsided around his head, revealing his human face once again.

"I will personally make your life a living Hell. See you 'round..._Peter_."

The way that he stretched his last word was filled with so much hatred that it sent a chill down the spine of anyone who heard it. Just then, the tape ended, showing nothing but static on the TV screen.

"Anyway," Parker said after the tape ended. "That was Venom, and he's why I'm here. He thinks I killed his wife and now he's more determined than ever to kill-"

"Uh, Spidey?" Cyborg interrupted.

"Yeah Vic?" said Parker.

"Sorry to interrupt you man," said Cyborg. "But you might want to look at your audience before you start giving a 'why I'm here' speech."

Parker looked at the other Titans after Cyborg's remark. Although Raven didn't seem the least bit phased, Starfire had buried her head in Robin's chest in addition to throwing her arms around his torso, quietly weeping out of fear. Robin had seen every bit of the tape, and was doing everything in his power to comfort her, particularly by lightly patting her upper back and saying, 'It's okay, Star, it's only a tape.' Then there was Beast Boy.

He was nowhere to be found. He had changed into a flea and was hiding in Robin's hair, quietly and quickly chanting to himself, _find a happy place._

"...point taken," said a half-dumbfounded Parker.

"Okay," Robin said after Starfire calmed down. "I've seen some freaky stuff in my life, but _that_ was just plain horrifying! If he's as ferocious as he is ugly, how do you sleep at night knowing that a monster like that is after you?"

"Believe me, I ask myself that same question every day," said Parker. "Anyway, that was Venom. The human you saw was Venom's human host, Eddie Brock. To make a long story short, the black thing you saw wrap itself around Brock is called a symbiote, and alien creature that binds itself to human hosts in order to survive. The symbiote was once bound to me, but I got rid of it once I found out that it was another living creature with it's own intentions. The symbiote was extremely sensitive sonic wavelengths, link the ringing of church bells, so I used the bell at an old abandoned church to get rid of it. About six months later, I managed to capture a serial killer called 'The Sin Eater.' A newspaper company called The Daily Globe had Eddie Brock working there as a journalist. He was writing articles about a guy who claimed to be the Sin Eater, but he turned out to be a compulsive confessor. Brock was fired, his first wife left him, his family disowned him, and society shunned him. Nobody would hire him for any kind of job, so he managed to eke out a living by writing articles for the supermarket tabloids. He was forced to move into the Bronx because he couldn't afford any place else. But most of all, he blamed _me_ for all of his problems. Unable to take being shunned, he considered killing himself. Thing was, he was raised a Catholic, and suicide's considered a one-way ticket to Hell as far as he's concerned. He went from church to church begging for forgiveness. Eventually, he ended up in the same church where I disposed of the symbiote. As my luck would have it, the symbiote wasn't dead. It grew a hatred towards me for trying to kill it, and it sensed Eddie's hatred for me as well. The symbiote latched onto Brock and formed a permanent bond. Thus, Venom was born."

"Venom and I had more battles then I care to remember, mostly because he always had an advantage over me. He's completely invisible to my spider-sense, giving him the ability to sneak up on me whenever he wants to. Since the symbiote was once part of me, Venom has all my powers, my abilities, and even my memories. This continued for years, and I thought it finally came to an end when I saved Brock's ex-wife. Venom looked at me in a different view from there on. After that, we made an agreement; he would go back to his home town and I would never mess with him again. Venom went to San Francisco, set up an establishment, and even managed to re-marry. Who fell in love with him, I have no idea. You can probably guess why I'm here by now."

"Look," said Robin. "It's not that I don't believe you, but Venom's evidence looks pretty solid. I mean, he has a point. Who else where's a mask like yours?"

"Nobody," said Parker. "But let me show you something..."

Parker took the remote and rewound the tape and paused it at the part where Eddie took out the mask.

"Now take a really good look," he said. "The mask he's holding was the mask I wore when I was sixteen years old. That's when I got my powers. I made that mask as well as my costume, but I outgrew it and threw it away. How Venom got a hold of it, I have no idea. Now let me show you something else..."

Parker then reached into his gym-bag and pulled out another mask. "This is the mask I wear now. See the difference?"

The Titans did see the difference between the masks. The mask that Venom held on the screen was slightly faded in color, the web-design looked a bit retro, and the eye pieces were very small. The mask that Parker held before them was in prime color condition, the eyes were bigger and bore a slight reflective surface, and the web-design was much sharper and more modern.

"Now I'm no detective," said Parker. "But it sure as Hell doesn't take one to figure out that someone wants me dead. And whoever that person is, they want Venom to do the job for them."

"One more question," said Robin after a brief pause. "You said earlier that Venom had all of your memories. What's to stop him from coming here if he knows that you're friends with Cyborg?"

"Because he doesn't," said Parker. "I didn't meet Vic until _after_ Eddie Brock became Venom. Venom has all my memories leading to were I was separated from the symbiote. Everything after that he could care less about."

Robin rubbed the back of his head and thought for a moment. _Should I really let him stay? _He thought. _This Venom guy doesn't sound like a pushover, and what if he does find out were Web Head's hiding? What would happen to the Titans? What would happen to Starfire... _

Then something happened to Robin that hadn't happened to him since he started training with Batman. He went with his basic instincts instead of his detective instincts. Spider-Man was Cyborg's friend, _and _Cyborg trusted him. And if there's one thing Robin learned, it was that Cyborg's trust wasn't easily earned. Besides, Venom never even met Cy, let alone knew that he was affiliated with The Amazing Spider-Man. He would never even think to look in Jump City.

What could go wrong?

"Well," he finally said with a slight smile. "Welcome to Titans Tower, Spider-Man."

"Cool," said Parker, feeling very relieved. "Thanks a lot man. I really appreciate it."

"Well alright," said Cyborg. "Now look Spidey, we don't have an empty room right now, so you'll have to crash on the couch for a few more nights. That cool?"

"Are you kidding?" said Parker. "I've slept in six different dumpsters for the past couple weeks! A couch would be Heaven on Earth right now."

"Before we begin," said Starfire as she flew towards Parker until her face was inches from his. "I have three simple questions for you; what planet are you from, what is your favorite color, and will you be my friend?"

"Um," said a confused Parker. "Well, last time I checked, I was from Earth. My favorite color is blue, and, uh...sure. Why not?"

"Glorious!" Starfire exclaimed as her face beamed with happiness. "Then welcome to our home, friend Spider-Man!" Starfire then treated Parker to her world famous bear-hugs, causing a surprised Parker to whelp in pain.

"_**Oh God, my back!"**_

**End Chapter Four**


	6. Chapter Five

**Hey everyone! I'm back! Sorry for the wait, and sorry that this is a Rae and Cy story and there hasn't been a lot of Rae and Cy action going on. I mainly wanted to get Spider-Man's whole reason for running out of the way so I wouldn't have to explain it in later chapters.**

**And, without further adieu, I present the fifth chapter of Even Superheroes Need Help!**

**Chapter Five**

**Care for Some Tea?**

After recovering from his minor back injury, Robin, Starfire, and Beast Boy gave Parker a tour of Titans Tower. While they were showing him around, Cyborg went to watch TV while Raven went to make some tea. Authentic Japanese Green Tea; one of her favorites. It didn't come by the bag like most forms of tea. She ordered it by the leaf, and had to prepare it a certain way. She had to bring the water just below boiling point, otherwise the aroma as well as the taste would be greatly distilled.

But Raven wasn't making this tea for herself, nor was it an ordinary blend. She was making it for Cyborg, and she was adding a very special ingredient. Using her telekinesis, she brought down a small wooden box from the back of the highest cupboard. She opened the box, revealing a black, flour-like powder. The powder itself was a heavily refined medicinal herb that only grew on her home planet; Azarath.

It didn't really have a name. People of Azarath found no need to name an object that would just be consumed. When Raven was little, she called it _the cure for everything with nothing, _for it could cure almost any kind of sickness, yet it had no taste or scent. It was very powerful, so very little was needed, even for someone of Cyborg's size. All she needed was less than half a pinch. The powder dissolved instantly in the hot tea, and left no color whatsoever. But the best part was the fact that it was nonaddictive, so Cyborg wouldn't crave more later.

Raven's purpose in doing this was not to try and drug Cyborg or make him more docile. He wasn't sick in any way, so the most the tea would do is relax him, and hopefully make him open up to her about his nightmares. From Raven's experiences, people were always more open to each other when they were relaxed. When the tea was finally ready, she carefully picked up the cup and walked toward Cyborg's direction.

* * *

Cyborg didn't really want to watch TV. He just used it as a legitimate excuse to sit down. The battle with the Shocker had spent most of his energy, and now he could barely even stand up. So he just sat and mindlessly flipped through channels, stopping once in a while when finding something at least remotely interesting.

Cyborg's thoughts wandered while he continued to endlessly push the clicker. He mostly thought about his nightmares, and when or if they would ever stop. He also thought about Spider-Man and how his presents in the tower would affect things. He hoped to all that was holy that Venom didn't find out where he was, or it would spell doom for everyone. He also thought a little about what to do with Beast Boy about putting work before play. And, strangely enough, he thought about Raven. Mostly, he thought about her reaction to telling her that he trusted her. Cyborg also couldn't help but think about all those pancakes she ate that morning.

"_I think that's the most I've ever seen that girl eat," _he thought to himself. _"Raven...wonder why she's worried about me so much all of a sudden..."_

While Cyborg continued his train of thought, he didn't notice Raven make her way around the couch and sit right next to him.

"Cyborg?"

"_Speak of the devil,"_ Cyborg thought as he looked in Raven's eyes. "Hey, Rae." he said. "What's up?"

"Nothing new," said Raven. "Here, drink this." she said as she gently and gracefully held the cup to him. "It will make you feel better."

Cyborg was a bit surprised at Raven's gesture. "No thanks," he said. "I'm not a big tea drinker."

"Cyborg," Raven said flatly. "Your head is so far in the clouds right now that you don't even realize you're watching _What Not to Wear_..."

Cyborg's eye widened as he discovered that Raven's words were true. He quickly grabbed the remote and hit the power button.

"I hate that show," Cyborg said with a raspy voice.

"Exactly," Raven said. "You're not down to Earth right now; you haven't been for the past few weeks. This will just keep you sharp."

Now Cyborg was starting to grow suspicious. Raven was _never _insistent on anything, especially with her precious herbal teas. Why would she suddenly want Cyborg to drink her tea so badly, and what kind of tea was it in the first place? Was it even tea to begin with? Did she drug it? Was she playing some kind of joke on him?

"_Get a grip Cy, now you're just getting stupid and paranoid." _he thought to himself.

"What's in it?" he asked, trying to sound curious rather than suspicious, but failing miserably. Raven rolled her eyes.

"Poison that will make your face turn pale and shrivel like Michael Jackson," she said sarcastically. "Just drink it before it get's cold."

Letting out a sigh of defeat, Cyborg gently took the cup from Raven's hand. He inhaled the aroma from the brew before sipping it, and cringed as he did so. He never cared for tea, or coffee for that matter. When he was still human, things like that were just empty calories that didn't help his body one bit as far as he was concerned. That, and they didn't taste very good. If Beast Boy were there, Cyborg knew he'd say something like, _'Dude, don't drink it! You'll pass out and wake up strapped down to a gurney and spend the rest of your natural life as Raven's love slave!'_ And if Spidey were there too, he'd just reply with something like, _'Hey, that doesn't sound so bad. Drink it, Vic!' _Since he couldn't do anything else, Cyborg took a small sip of the hot green tea.

And it wasn't bad. In fact, it was quite good. So good that Cyborg couldn't help but take a bigger sip. Raven's face showed a slight hint of a smile as Cyborg took bigger sips. Soon enough, the cup was empty, and the herb had begun to take its effect. All the tension in the organic components in Cyborg's body left, and for the first time in a long time, he felt relaxed.

"...Better?" said Raven.

"Yeah," Cyborg said, his voice barely above a whisper. "Much better...thanks Rae."

"Good," said Raven. "Very good. Now, since our last conversation was interrupted, why don't you tell me more about your nightmares?"

Cyborg, even though he still wasn't comfortable with that topic, felt that if there were a time, place, and person to talk about it, it was there, now, and with Raven. Besides, she deserved to know since his nightmares also deprived Raven of rest as well as Cyborg. And, in spite of that, she was being so nice to him right now.

"Well," Cyborg finally said after a brief pause. "As I told you before, it's about my last day being human. It...it starts with me and my mom-"

"You mean, 'My mom and I,' right?"

"...Yeah, whatever. Anyway, I didn't want to be there that day. My _dad and I _never got along very well. He wanted me to follow him in his foot steps of being a scientist, and I wanted to be an athlete. For that, he looked down on me, and never even called me his son. It's like he was ashamed of me or something. I mean, why couldn't he just be proud of what I wanted to do, not shun me for not doing what I was made for..."

Raven raised an eyebrow. "...Made for?"

Cyborg's eye went wide before he slapped himself in the face for being so careless.

"Dammit!" he scoffed. "Think I just said too much..."

"What are you talking about?"

Cyborg looked around the room to make sure that nobody was in the room with them. He didn't see anyone, and his sensors detected that Robin, Starfire, Spider-Man, and Beast Boy were still on the third floor. Even so, he didn't want to take the chance of someone walking in on them unexpectedly . . .

"Come on," he said as he stood up. "I'll tell you in my room."

Cyborg headed toward the hallway and Raven followed close behind. Even though her face didn't show it, Raven was beyond confused. What did Cyborg mean by _made for?_ And why did he want to talk in his room? But most importantly, what was he hiding from everyone...

The second that they made to Cyborg's room, he rushed Raven inside and quickly locked the door behind them. He did so as if he didn't want even an insect to hear what he was about to say. Raven took some time to glance around Cyborg's room. It wasn't like other teenaged boy's rooms. There were machine parts and power tools everywhere, no bed, virtually no furniture save for a couch, books and manuals on auto repair, posters of scantily clad women...well, maybe that part wasn't so unusual. There were also no windows, much like Raven's room, and a stack of weapons, tools, and auto-parts catalogs were strewn about his desk.

"This isn't a bedroom," Raven thought glumly. "This is a machine shop."

"Here, sit down," Cyborg said as he motioned Raven to his couch. As Raven sat down, she felt the urge to just stand up. The couch was half worn-out, faded in color, and _very _uncomfortable. Cyborg himself never used it, and thus felt no need to replace it. Still, Raven didn't want to be rude. So she sat, as he instructed. Cyborg got the chair fro his desk and sat down in front of Raven. As they made eye contact, Raven noticed something ominous in the look in Cyborg's human eye.

"Now you listen _very _closely, Rae," he said, his voice calm but stern. "Only a handful of people in the whole world know what I'm about to tell you, and most of them are dead. It's not that I don't trust you, but if you tell_ anyone_ what I'm about to tell you, I swear to all that's holy I will snap you in half. Do I make myself clear?"

Most people, especially teenagers, would have been terrified at Cyborg's statement. Not Raven. She knew that if Cyborg _really _wanted to scare her, he'd simply tie her to the hood of his car and play chicken with a freight train. That, or put Beast Boy in a thong and have him give Raven a lap-dance. She knew better than that. She knew that whatever Cyborg was going to tell her, it was obviously beyond the terms of important and confidential. What more could Raven do other than keep true to Cyborg's statement?

"Clear as crystal," said Raven.

"...Good," said Cyborg after a brief pause. "Now listen really carefully, 'cause I'm only gonna say this once..."

"As far as I can tell, it all started in 1966, during the Vietnam War. American citizens were outraged by the carnage caused by troops from both Vietnam and America. People wanted the troops to come home, and they did whatever they could to halt military operations. They set themselves on fire, lay motionless in front of military vehicles, and caused antiwar riots across the country. Needless to say, it was getting out of hand."

"In 1967, the U.S. Government issued a proposition that nobody knew about. Not even the President. The proposition went towards the creation of artificial soldiers; clones to replace the real ones so no more American boys had to come home to their mothers in coffins. They spent over a year trying to find a way to create these super soldiers. They wanted them to be perfect; physically strong, high endurance, high intelligence, nerves of steel, and trained in ten different fighting styles. They wanted to create the ultimate killing machine. They named the project 'Adam,' after the man in the Biblical story, Adam and Eve."

"In 1969, they created a serum that would enhance the abilities of a normal human. All that they needed was a test subject. 19 year old lab assistant Silas Stone, my father, volunteered for the project. They injected him with four cc's of the serum that they only called 'D.H.' That's sort for 'Disposable Hero.' Stone's mind showed excellent improvement, and his I.Q. level reached 300 in less than a month. Only problem was that his mind was the only thing that grew. His body didn't show any signs of growth, and he was still ignorant in ways of fighting. They figured that the project failed, and thus it was terminated."

"But the serum wasn't a complete failure. Silas still carried it in his system, and unknowingly passed it on to me the day that I was conceived. My mother carried me for only three months, yet I was fully developed when I was born. I started walking at only three months old, and was speaking in complete sentences by the time I was two years old. I was able to bench-press 85 pounds by the time I was six, and I was reading at a college grade level by the time I was eight. When swimming, I could hold my breath for almost an hour without feeling the least bit dizzy. Not even a Navy SEAL could accomplish that. My dad realized long before I started reading that the serum stayed in his system and passed it on to me. As a result, he wanted me to be a scientist, just like him and my mom."

"Well, that brings me up to the point where my nightmare begins. My mother was an expert in genome research, and my father had nine college degrees in robotic engineering. As I mentioned before, I didn't want anything to do with being a scientist. I wanted to be a pro football player, and maybe even coach my own team. But my ultimate dream, my one and only wish, was to win a gold medal in the summer Olympics. And for that, my father shunned me. He always told me that going out for sports was a waste of my abilities, and that I would be better of helping him in S.T.A.R. Labs. He made me feel even _more_ guilty by saying that people like me were the reason Al Simmons died."

"Al Simmons?" Raven asked with a raised eye brow. "Who's that?"

"Al Simmons was a marine turned U.S. Government trained assassin," Cyborg continued. "And a good friend to my family. He died in 1989 during an assignment, and is the one of the reasons my dad reinstated the project to create the ultimate warrior. The other reason was the War on Terror we're in now. Once again, they wanted to make a disposable hero. This time they wanted to integrate human tissue with cybernetic body parts, for cloning a perfect warrior is damn near impossible. That's when my mom and I were called to S.T.A.R. Labs after my dad claimed that he hit a breakthrough. We made to the lab, and my dad showed me..."

Cyborg's eyes suddenly grew heavy, and he was unable to concentrate on what he was saying.

"Showed...me..." his voice was growing soft, and he was beginning to feel light-headed. "Show..."

"Cyborg?" Raven asked, her solid voice betraying the fact that she was worried. "What's wrong?"

Unable to keep his balance, Cyborg fell from his chair and hit the floor with a menacing _clank. _Raven sprang from the couch and rushed to his side, taking his head in her arms.

"Cyborg?"

"Rae..." he said weakly. "What...was...in...that...tea?"

With that said, Cyborg passed out and entered a dreamless sleep, one of the side-effects of the healing herb.

"Nice job," Raven said to herself as she rolled her eyes. "You used too much."

Raven knew a spell that would allow herself to enter Cyborg's dream so the she could see it for herself. When done so, she would be as a ghost in that dream world. Nobody would be able to see or hear her. However, that spell would be beyond useless at the moment. After all, Cyborg was in a dreamless sleep.

Raven sighed. "Looks like he'll be out for 12 or 15 hours. Well, at least he'll get some rest this time."

_Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos..._

Raven's powers brought Cyborg up from the floor and onto his repair panel. Before leaving, however, Raven felt the urge to do something...out of her ordinary, to say the least. She made her way toward Cyborg's side, and leaned over the human side of his face. At first, she simply stood there, as if she were waiting for him to wake up. She wanted to do what she wanted to do, but thought of a million reasons why and why not to.

_Go ahead, nobody's watching._

_No, you can't take advantage of him like that!_

_Come on, what could happen?_

_One of the other Titans could walk in._

_The door's locked._

_Someone might ask._

_Just tell them that you helped Cy to his bed._

_What if he wakes up?_

_That stuff you gave him could knock out The Incredible Hulk. He won't wake up._

_You sure?_

_Positive._

_Alright then...here goes..._

Raven closed her eyes, put her lips together, and gave Cyborg a light but loving peck on his cheek. Just like she told herself. He didn't wake up.

"Good night, Cyborg."

**End Chapter Five**


	7. Chapter six

**Chapter Six**

**Dark Warrior, Greedy Magician**

New York City. One of America's greatest cities. People call it the City That Never Sleeps, or simply the Big Apple. It's the home of the Statue of Liberty, The Empire State Building, The Chrysler Building, and the resting place for all of the victims from the 9/11 attack. It is also the home of two of the greatest super hero teams in the world; The Fantastic Four and The Avengers. But in spite of that, it is a dangerous city, and has one of the highest crime rates in the world. Every day over a dozen people get killedand hundreds more are robbed on the street. Needless to say, none of these appalling acts are performed anywhere near the Fantastic Four or the Avengers' bases of operations. They manifest themselves in a much more secluded part of New York; a place called Brooklyn.

Brooklyn. A terrible part of town. The very base of operations for the Mafia, and a safe haven for corrupt police officers, murderers, drug dealers, and the notorious Kingpin of Crime; the billionaire Wilson Fisk. Fisk had the Mob in his back pocket. Even the Godfather was indebted to him. For every crime that's committed in New York, Fisk would get 40 of the profit. Whoever didn't comply would be sent to the morgue. Most of the area is run down and neglected, and there wasn't a single home not been robbed or defaced. Any person with some decency wouldn't be caught dead in this place, because they always end up in the Hudson River. Many people who come to Brooklyn call it 'the worst place in America.'

But there was one spot in Brooklyn where not a single crime had been committed since late 1994. An area that roughly spanned four city blocks, and was the most rundown place in all of New York. There hadn't been garbage service in that area for years, and attracted any and all forms of vermin to that area. Thus earning it's nickname.

Rat City.

Rat City was home to New York's most unfortunate; homeless, runaways, people damned by society, and people on the run from Fisk and the Mob. No wrong doer dared to even spit in Rat City's direction, for it was the home of who was possibly the most ruthless man in the world. The people who live in Rat City call him _'The Guardian,' _for they believe he's there to protect them. Any person with even the slightest desire to do wrong that walked in Rat City always ended up in an alley in a pool of their own blood with their heads on backwards. So appalling were the killings, the media named the mystery killer 'The Rat City Butcher.'

Who was this man that protected the unfortunate? He used to be a man. A tall, strapping, handsome Black man at that matter. A soldier that lived to serve his country. He even took a bullet for the President of The United States while his bodyguards cowered behind the podium. After that, he was promoted to secret services. He became a government-trained assassin, and traveled around the world following orders for ten years. His name was Al Simmons.

And he was a hero.

But it didn't last. In 1989 Jason Wynn, the CEO of the government agency that Simmons worked for, ordered him to take Chapel, another assassin, to the jungles of Cambodia. There, Simmons and Chapel were supposed to assassinate a Cambodian arms dealer to ensure national security. But there was a flaw in his mission. By the time Simmons made it to the coordinates of the arms base, there was nothing there. There was no arms dealer either. Chapel then revealed that Wynn's real orders were to have Simmons terminated, and brought back saying that he was killed on the field. Chapel burned Simmons alive, and said that there was a terrible accident with some plastic explosives.

Simmons' charred corpse was taken back to America. He was given a hero's funeral, and the president himself attended. A parade was held in his honor, and was given a 200-gun salute during his burial. His country mourned for him, especially his wife, Wanda Blake. Wanda's last words to her husband were, 'Go with God, my darling.'

But Simmons didn't go to Heaven. If you slaughter people for a living, the chances of getting a key to the Pearly Gates are impossible. Simmons' soul was sent to the underworld, where the devil himself, Malebolgia, made a deal with Simmons. He could either burn in Hell for all eternity, or lead Hell's army and see his wife again. It was an offer that Simmons simply couldn't refuse. But there was a price he had to pay. Before he could see his wife, he had to burn in Hell for five years, slowly gaining the power of Hell's General. Most of his memories were taken from him, and his humanity was virtually erased. Five long years later, he returned to Earth no longer a man.

He was now a Hellspawn, _Spawn _for short.

He never lead Hell's army. He retreated to Rat City, the only part of the world that would accept him. Where else could he possibly go? He was a man from Hell that wore a 15-foot long red cloak with a high collar. That cloak had it's share of rips and shreds, but that wasn't it. The cloak was alive, just like the rest of his suit, the uniform of Hell. The cloak always swayed about, even without the benefit of wind. It never got caught on anything, for it would hinder Spawn's ability to fight. In retrospect, his suit wasn't very detailed. Jet black, skin tight with a white V-like design on his chest and upper back. Or, at least it seemed skin-tight. It was, in fact, part of his own flesh. He wore a mask that covered his scorched head, a white demonic wing-like design on the face. His eyes gave of an eerie green glow, signifying that he was no longer human. The most distinctive traits of the uniform were his chain belts with a demonic skull for a buckle, and his crimson gauntlets with steel spikesand matching footwear. The chains, like his cloak and suit, lived and breathed as he did.

Since he never lead the Army of Darkness, Malebolgia dubbed him a traitor to the underworld. And since he was a Hellspawn, Heaven didn't exactly think very highly of him. As a result, both demons and angels alike hunted him daily.

But none of them succeeded. Being a Hellspawn, he was granted near unlimited power. He even managed to defeat his arch-nemesis, the Violator. The Violator was Malebolgia's second in command, and lived to torment Spawn's existence. Sometimes the Violator would take the form of a hideous clown, adding more of a grotesque appearance.

But none of that mattered now. The Violator was dead. It's corpse decaying inside a desecrated church deep within Rat City. It had also been more than three months since a demon or angel attacked him, and Rat City was as quiet as ever. He stood in the moonlight atop a giant crucifix of the same church that was the Violator's grave. He never ate, he rarely slept, and he never stopped his savage killing. That was the real reason nobody on the wrong side of the law dared to go into Rat City. Spawn wasn't protecting it's locals; he was simply a predator defending his territory.

"Al Simmons," he'd say to himself every day to remind himself what it sounds like. His deep, foreboding voice was enough to send shivers up the spines of the bravest men. He had been a Hellspawn for almost 15 years, and he couldn't bear it a second longer. He had tried everything, even suicide, to end his existence. Nothing worked.

"Why?" he'd ask himself. "Why must I live on like this?"

"_Because you have damned yourself, Hellspawn."_

Spawn quickly turned in the direction of the voice he just heard, and met eyes with a young man wearing a blue robe standing on the roof of the church. The man looked like he just entered his twenties, and had dark-brown hair that went past his shoulders.

"Who the hell are you?" Spawn said in disgust. "If you're another hunter, you'd best get lost before you end up just like the rest before you!"

"You need not worry, Hellspawn," the young man said with assurance in his voice. "My name is Richard, and I'm merely a messenger. And as such I have come to deliver you a message, not to fight in a battle that will only result in my demise."

This had Spawn wondering what exactly was going on. "A message?" Spawn leapt from atop the crucifix and landed with astounding grace directly in front of Richard. The young man stood at about 5'5", and Spawn was at least a foot taller than he was. Spawn closely examined this boy who called himself a messenger. Spawn could sense angelic influence emanating from Richard's aurora, but he didn't seem the hunting type, nor could Spawn sense any hostility. Still, there was something _very _familiar about him.

"Hmm..." Spawn growled. "You don't look like a warrior, so that's bought you a minute. If you want to deliver me a message, you'd best talk fast. Start talking."

"Very well," Richard said, his voice slightly shaken. He had heard many unsettling stories about this Hellspawn, and now he was face to face with the bane of a thousand of Heaven's finest warriors. Needless to say, he was frightened out of his mind. But still, he had a job to do.

"I'll make this short then," he said. "Heaven's Grand Council has witnessed your defeat of the Violator, a demon of the ancient-"

"I _know _who the Violator is," Spawn barked. "Get to the point before I rip your spine out!"

"Uh, y-yes. Of course," Richard stuttered. "The Grand Council wishes to m-make a proposal with you...in exchange for...s-some of your time."

A proposal? This was very strange, for Heaven's only actions toward Spawn in the past involved sending him to oblivion. Now Heaven wanted to make him an offer? Something wasn't right. Was it a trick? A scheme? A folly in order to lure Spawn into a trap? Of course, what was the worst that could happen? Spawn's life had literally been a living Hell this past decade and a half, and not much worse could happen to him now. After all, he had lost his will to live years ago, and his friends and family that were still alive had almost completely forgotten about him. What did he have left to lose? Oblivion, after all, was a desolate place where no creature could possibly live. No sky, no Earth, no air, no Heaven, and no Hell. Only eternal solitude was what oblivion held. Suddenly, oblivion sounded very nice to the Hellspawn.

"Very well," said Spawn. "Tell your council that I'm interested."

"Good," said Richard, feeling relieved as ever.

"When do they want to see me?" asked Spawn.

"Well, actually," said Richard. "The Council wished to see you immediately...if you don't mind, that is."

"Fine."

"Good," said Richard. "Very good. Now, give me your hands, please."

Spawn did as Richard instructed and held out his hands. Richard cautiously took each hand in his own, then looked Spawn directly in his eyes.

"I advise you to brace yourself, Hellspawn," said Richard. "These teleportations can be both very treacherous, and most unsettling."

Just then, both Spawn and Richard were engulfed in a brilliant flash of light. The light was so blinding that Spawn couldn't see momentarily. When his eyes came to, Spawn couldn't believe what he saw.

Blue sky, clean air, golden streets and marble buildings crested with jewels and diamonds. Green, beautiful plants, flowers of all colors, and not so much as a chewing gum wrapper littered the streets. The city itself seemed as if it were a super-structure; a grand sculpture carved from a single piece of marble. The delicious smell of world-class meals filled the air, and not a sad face was seen among the white-robed, multi-skinned people all around.

"This is..." Spawn began in a sullen voice.

"Yes, Hellspawn." Richard finished with a smile and a caring look in his eyes. "This is Heaven."

* * *

It had been three days since Spider-Man's arrival at Titans Tower, and he had been feeling more at home than ever before. The Titans had accepted him as well, and let him join in their activities. He sparred with Robin, (won every time,) played video-games with Beast Boy, listened to Raven's poetry, (fell asleep through half of them,) worked on the T-Car with Cyborg, and had an occasional arm-wrestling contest with Starfire, (and always lost.) And of course, he joined in on movie night. 

But his stay wasn't all play and no work. He gladly pulled his weight around the tower without a single argument. He cleaned, did the dishes, (since he couldn't cook,) washed the windows, and did lots of laundry. Anyone else would have scoffed at every single chore, but he welcomed them with open webs. After all, doing a bushel of chores was better than being found by Venom.

It was lunch time now, and the Titans were on the roof of the tower enjoying the contents of their barbeque at a fold-out table that Cyborg built for this kind of occasion. Beast Boy ate a grilled tofu burger with organic lettuce and tomatoes while everyone else treated their taste-buds to Cyborg's barbequed tri-tip sandwiches with grilled onions and pepper jack cheese.

"You know something," Spider-Man spoke up as he wiped barbeque sauce from his face, still wearing his jersey, sweats, and slippers. The tone in his voice showed that he was greatly enjoying himself. "I've been to a _lot_ of super hero bases, but _nothing _like this. I mean, you guys really have it made! You've got freaking everything here! An arcade, a gym, a swimming pool, and not to mention a killer view! Where do you guys get all the money for this stuff, anyway?"

"From two sources," Robin said with his mouth full. He swallowed his bite before finishing his sentence. "We receive monthly dividends from both Wayne Enterprises and STAR Industries. After all, where else are a bunch of teenaged superheroes gonna get the money for a base like this? That, plus Beast Boy has his own internet business of selling books called _101 Ways of Cooking Tofu _for twenty bucks a piece."

"Really?" said Spider-Man as he turned his head towards Beast Boy. "How's that working out for you?"

"Well," Beast Boy said as he finished off his burger. "A family in Japan bought one..." His shoulders then slumped as his face grew an annoyed look. "But no one else did. I still haven't figured out what to do with the 3,000 yen they sent me either..."

"Well," Spider-Man said as he swallowed another mouth-full of beef, bread and onions. "That explains the stock-pile of books I saw in the storage room..."

Raven didn't even pay the least bit of attention to any of the conversations. She simply sat in her spot and took small, delicate bites of her sandwich while thinking deeply. She thought mostly about why Cyborg's nightmares suddenly stopped. At least that was what she thought was the cause of her not waking up in the middle of the night due to spectral energies caused by painful emotions. That, plus Cyborg didn't seem the least bit exhausted the past few days, pointing out that he was getting a good night's sleep. It couldn't have been the herb that she gave him, for the dream-suppressing side-effect only lasted ten to twelve hours at the most. She doubted that it was the arrival of Spider-Man that stopped his nightmares, even though they seemed to be great friends and all. They couldn't have possibly just stopped on their own, for they had been happening too long to just suddenly stop.

Therefore, what could it be?

Raven's thought was interrupted by Spider-Man suddenly leaping into the air and landing ten or so feet behind his seat, taking a spider-like pose as he stuck to the ground. A look upon his face that none of the Titans could describe signaled that his spider-sense had just went off. Just then, a tremor erupted from the Earth, causing Titans Tower and all of Jump City to rumble and shake violently. But just as soon as it started, it stopped. Spider-Man stood back up and looked about with a look of both confusion and bewilderment upon his face.

"Okay," he said with a raised eye-brow and his head cocked slightly to the left. "What in the hell was that?"

"That was just another earthquake," said Cyborg, finishing his sandwich and acting as if nothing happened. "You forget, Spidey. You're in California now. We get them here all the time."

"Oh," said Spider-Man with a sweat drop on his face. "And here I thought that Dr. Doom was attacking us or something..."

"You do not need to feel foolish," said Starfire as she sipped her glass of mustard. "I too was frightened during my first experience of the quaking of the Earth, for I thought that the Xenomorphs had been burrowing underground. I was quite relieved when informed that it was only the collision of the Earth's tectonic plates that caused the violent shaking."

The blaring sound of the all-too-familiar Titan alarm could suddenly be heard, causing a groan from each Titan to emit. Everyone, Spider-Man included, darted towards the living room before Robin could say 'Titans, trouble.' They made it to the living room in no time at all, where the monitor showed that Mumbo Jumbo had robbed yet another jewelry store, and was currently giving the police a rough time.

"Aw, crap," Cyborg and Beast Boy said in unison with slumped shoulders.

"Anything but him again," Starfire groaned.

"Let's just go and be extra careful," Robin said. "I don't know about you guys, but the last thing I want is to get turned into a baboon again."

"You were a chimp, dude." Beast Boy corrected.

"Whatever. Titans, GO!"

The Teen Titans then headed straight to the garage where the T-Car and R-Cycle waited, leaving Spider-Man hanging in the living room.

"Uh, sure thing," Spider-Man said not nearly loud enough for them to hear. "I'll just...stay here and clean something, I guess..."

* * *

"Mumbo Jumbo!" 

The spell that Mumbo had cast transformed the policemen's weapons into harmless squirt guns, and had changed their boots into concrete. Needless to say, chasing Mumbo on foot was impossible.

"Since you guys seem to have other problems afoot," he said with his trademarked grin while holding his bag of stolen goods. "I think I'll just take these jewels and be on my way."

A star bolt suddenly shot it's way through the air and directly hit the bag, causing it to explode and sending jewels, diamonds, and money flying in all directions. Black energy had engulfed the stone shoes of the police, thus causing them to melt away and rendering the policemen able to walk, even though bare footed. To Mumbo's dismay, the Teen Titans had stood before him, fighting poses taken and everything.

"Time to hang up the cape, Mumbo," Robin said with a birderang drawn. "Because the curtain's closed."

"On the contrary," Mumbo said as he reared up his wand. "The show has just begun it's second half! Unfortunately for you and your friends, your parts in my script are over!"

"Oh really?" Beast Boy said with his chin up. "I guess it's a good thing that we're not part of your crappy script."

"Well then," Mumbo smirked. "Why don't you kiddies show Mumbo what a first-class script is like...through your actions!"

With a flick of his wand, Mumbo sent many fireballs towards his opponents. Raven summoned a black shield that blocked every projectile, while the other Titans split in different directions in hope of finding an advantage over the mad magician. Cyborg readied his sonic cannon, Starfire charged up her star bolts, Beast Boy changed into a tiger, and Robin wielded three birderangs in each hand. Robin, Starfire, and Cyborg attacked simultaneously while Beast Boy lunged forward in an attempt to maul Mumbo.

"Tough crowd," Mumbo smirked. "Oh well, show's over. It's time to **par-TAY**! Mumbo Jumbo!"

The spell that Mumbo had cast transformed Cyborg's beam into blue streamers, Starfire's star bolts into green confetti, Robin's birderangs into red and yellow balloons, and Beast Boy into a performing circus tiger.

"For me?" Mumbo said with the weakest puppy look he could muster. "You shouldn't have!"

Mumbo then made an attempt to flee from the confused Titans, but was foiled as chunks of concrete and asphalt the size of small cars engulfed in black energy were hurled towards him, both blocking his path and nearly crushing him in the process. As he looked into the direction of the falling debris, he met eyes with a levitating Raven.

"Now, now, now," Mumbo said, waving his finger about. "It's not polite to throw rocks at people. I think that you need a **time out**!"

With yet another flick of his wand, a surprised Raven was instantly pulled to the ground and tied to a chair, a dunce hat appearing on her head and a gag covering her mouth. In her current situation, it was impossible to use her powers.

_Perfect, _she thought dully. _Just perfect._

With one down, only four Titans remained. Starfire and Cyborg came on Mumbo's right while Robin and Beast Boy, who had now taken the form of a dire wolf, came on his left. Each and every one of them were ready for whatever else Mumbo had in store for them, and prepared themselves for the worst. It was then that Mumbo realized that both the robot's body, the alien's collar, belt, and gauntlets, and the boy wonder's cape and boots were each made of metal. This gave him an idea that he should have thought of a long time ago.

"Give it up, Mumbo!" Robin exclaimed. "You may have Raven pinned, but you can't beat us all!"

"I don't intend to do so," Mumbo said with a grin. "I have something for the world to see, and you kiddies don't want to miss it. So why don't you just, **stick around!**"

One of the concrete chunks transformed into a giant square magnet, causing Cyborg, Starfire, and Robin to fly straight towards it, along with various other metal objects, (car keys, manhole covers, bullets, etc.) An ear-piecing clang was heard when Cyborg hit it, and both Robin and Starfire winced in pain upon impact. Cyborg couldn't move an inch, and Robin's cape had stuck to the magnet in a manner that covered his entire body. Although Starfire's legs were free and she herself was strong enough to break away, she had landed at an angle where she couldn't get any leverage to pull away.

Mumbo looked very pleased with himself, for now there was only one Titan left. Beast Boy lunged at him once again is his dire wolf form in an attempt to pin him to the ground. This time, he was successful in pinning Mumbo, and let out a loathsome growl over Mumbo's face.

"Your bad masters bread a bad doggie," Mumbo said with yet another smirk. "Time to teach you some new tricks. **Down boy!**"

Beast Boy was suddenly flung in the air as a magic dog collar wrapped itself around his neck and then tied him to a piece of asphalt that changed into a 900 pound dog house. The collar had a spell cast upon it that only allowed him to change into other members of the canine family. He couldn't change into a smaller dog and escape, for the collar adjusted itself to each size. (But that didn't stop him from trying.)

Mumbo's plan had worked perfectly. The Teen Titans were now in his grasp, and he didn't plan on setting them free unless the city had payed him one hefty ransom. 50 million dollars sounded reasonable, and Mumbo always wanted beach property. Maybe he'd buy every vineyard from Sonoma County to L.A., or maybe move into the governor's house. All that, of course, could be decided later. Right now, he had some demands to make. He walked proudly over to his captives with quite a sadistic smile.

"And now, my fellow teenaged bargaining chips," he bellowed. "It's time for the main event!"

* * *

Meanwhile, back at Titans tower, Spider-Man had just finished the dishes and was now enjoying the afternoon showing of his favorite movie; Pulp Fiction. 

'_...and I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and **furious**_ _anger on those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers! And you will know my name is the lord as I lay my vengeance upon you!_'

"BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG!" Spider-Man exclaimed in unison with the TV's gunfire as he stood up on the couch while brandishing his imaginary gun. "Oh yeah! Great flick! Great freaking flick! I love this movie!"

As he sat back down, he looked at his watch. "Two-o-clock..." he mused. "They've been gone over an hour already. Hope they're okay..."

'_We interrupt this program for an important news flash.'_

At any other time in any other place, Spider-Man would have been furious that the media would even dare interrupt one of the greatest movies ever made, and most likely would have said something like, _'Somebody important better be dead or sick, cause that's the only excuse I'm tolerating for this.' _But at the moment he was struck with worry, for he somehow knew that the bulletin involved his friends, and it couldn't have been good. He watched on as a reporter appeared on-screen in an area that looked like Jump City Square.

'_We are reporting live at Jump City Square..'_

He knew it.

'_...where the unthinkable has struck. The villain known as the Amazing Mumbo_ _has defeated the Teen Titans, Jump City's protectors, and is now holding them hostage.'_

Sure enough, Spider-Man could see them in the background, all bound to some kind of restraining device.

'_Mumbo has demanded that he be given 50 million dollars in cash, 300 acres of beach property, and a 2005 Dodge Viper. He has made clear that if his demands aren't made by sundown, the Teen Titans will be executed on the spot. City officials-'_

Spider-Man heard enough. No way in Hell was he going to let some cracked-out magician hurt his new friends in any way, shape, or form. Without wasting a second, he leaped from the couch and dashed down the hallway towards his room. He made it there in less than ten seconds, and threw the door open has he went towards his closet. He quickly opened the closet where his both his now zestfully clean suit and fully loaded web-shooters that Cyborg re-designed for him waited. He reached for his outfit, pulled it off of the hanger, and then...

He stopped, realizing what he was doing as a look of dread fell upon his face.

"Wait a minute," he said aloud. "I can't go out there as Spider-Man. It'll be all over the news, and Venom will be over here before the day is out."

He shoved his suit back in the closet without hanging it up, afterwards pacing about the room frantically. He thought, and he thought, but he couldn't figure out what to do. He needed to save his friends, but how would he do so without Venom finding out? He simply couldn't go outside the way he looked, for Mumbo wouldn't take him seriously if he did so. He thought about borrowing one of Robin's outfits, but realized that it wouldn't fit him. He was taller than Robin by almost a foot, and as such he had twice as much muscle. Therefore, what could he do?

"Of course!" he exclaimed as he remembered. He brought some insurance for this kind of occasion, but got so comfortable in the tower that he forgot that he packed it. He rushed over to his gym-bag that he tucked under his bed, and pulled out his said insurance; a suit not related to Peter Parker or Spider-Man in any way possible.

"Good thing I brought you," he said with a smile of both pride and relief. He quickly put the suit on and darted towards the garage, in hopes of finding a spare R-Cycle he could use for quick transportation. As he left the living room, he didn't hear the last news update that would have later proved useful to his cause...

'_In other news, the Jump City Police have confirmed the reports of a large, reptilian humanoid that was spotted in the outskirts of Jump City two days ago. The creature was first sighted in a campsite a few miles from Crimson Canyon, and has attacked a group of lumber jacks in it's wake. The creature was last spotted by the river heading straight for Jump City itself. Though officials have yet to confirm, witnesses have claimed that the creature is wearing both a pair of torn blue jeans and a blood-stained white lab coat. Officials advise that you stay indoors until this creature is contained. More on this story as it develops. And now, back to our regular programing...'_

**End Chapter Six (finally)**


	8. Chapter Seven

**Chapter Seven**

**Mumbo's Last Performance**

The Teen Titans struggled desperately to get free of their restraints, but to no avail. Each one was bound in a certain way, each fitting their powers and abilities. Robin, to his humiliation, was stripped down to his boxers when he was searched for lock-picks and such. Now he was strapped down to a machine by his wrists, ankles, neck, torso, and waist to prevent him from escaping. Cyborg was bound to the same machine as Robin, tied with electro-magnetic cables that weakened his arms and legs to great extent. Where Mumbo found something like that, Cyborg had no idea. Starfire was bound in a similar way to Robin, only many more restraints were used due to her alien strength. Her eyes were blindfolded in order to prevent her from using her eye-bolts, and her head was clamped down in one position. Beast Boy was simply tied down with large elastic bands, this time wearing a collar that prevented him from changing into any form of animal. Not much was needed for Raven, since her physical strength rivaled that of a small child. She was simply hand cuffed, gagged, and blind-folded in order to prevent her from using any of her spells. Of course, all she had to do in order to escape would be to get angry and have her powers destroy the machine that she and her friends were bound to, but there was the chance of hurting them in the process. But to top it all off, each Titan had collars around their necks that would send 300,000 volts through their nervous systems on Mumbo's command. Voltage that high fed directly through their spinal cords would kill them almost instantly.

So there they were. The almighty Teen Titans tied to Mumbo's circular restraining machine in the middle of Jump City Square like some trophies in a gallery.

The city had no choice but to give in to Mumbo's demands. Mumbo had made it absolutely clear that if he had seen any sign of a cop, The Justice League, The Avengers, or anyone wearing a mask so much as looked in his direction, the Titans would die. That said, any attempt to rescue the Titans would be in vain. Although Robin half-way expected to end up in a situation like this someday, he pictured it with Slade, or Brother Blood, or even the Joker. _Never_ someone like Mumbo.

Three dump-trucks made their way down the street, heading straight in Mumbo's direction. Each truck was filled to the brim with money, as per Mumbo's demands. Since the public's attention was fixed on the well-being of the Teen Titans, and since Mumbo had his mind on the money and the money on his mind, nobody noticed a lone figure clad in black leather attach himself to the back of the rear truck...

Mumbo, at the time, was feeling very pleased with himself. He alone had succeeded where villains greater than him had failed. With the Teen Titans all tied up and his money-filled trucks coming into view, he flamboyantly made his way towards the street in order to greet the driver of the leading truck. The driver himself wasn't the least bit pleased with what he was doing, but he figured that if there were anyway to pay the Teen Titans back for saving his wife from that car accident, it would be this way. Either way, he hated it.

As Mumbo spoke with the driver, Robin emphasized his situation.

"This sucks," he said plainly. No one responded to his comment, but it didn't matter to him. He had tried everything in his power to escape, and all of them failed. Thus, he lost all hope of escaping. The sun was just setting now, and the ocean breeze was taking it's toll on Robin's flesh. "It's cold out here..."

"Hey Rob," Cyborg whispered. "Look at that, on top of the rear truck..."

Robin looked in the direction that Cyborg instructed, and couldn't believe his eyes. He spotted a man in a crouching pose, slowly crawling towards Mumbo's position. The way he moved reminded Robin of a character in one of Beast Boy's anime's, particularly the one called _Naruto_. As Robin looked on, he could see what the man wore and what he looked like. He was wearing a black leather jacket with a stylish red 'R' on it's back, with a gray muscle shirt, blue jeans and black combat boots. He wore gray gloves, and a gray ski-mask that covered his face, ears, and neck. His brown hair flowed freely through the wind, and his sharp blue eyes were ever alert.

Robin watched with amazement as the figure he saw leaped from the front of the rear truck, did several flips through the air, and landed gracefully on top of the cab of the leading truck without making a sound. The man landed in a crouching position, both hands and feet touching the top of the cab. The man's head then snapped forward, as if he noticed something. He then shot his gaze towards Robin and Cyborg. They simply stared each other down for a moment, looking each other dead in the eyes. After a slight pause, the man made a 'hush' gesture with his hand. Robin and Cyborg each complied with a nod.

Meanwhile, Mumbo and the truck driver were each having a bit of a feud, the whole reason neither of them noticed the man on top of the truck. Mumbo was furious over the fact that his Viper hadn't been delivered with the money, not to mention that the trucks were ten minutes late. For every insult that Mumbo made to the driver, the driver would come back with two.

"For the last time," Mumbo barked. "Why isn't my car here, you scruffy, blue-collar, foul-smelling neanderthal?"

"I already told you," the driver growled. "For the millionth time, I was only told to deliver the money, you cape brandishing fruitcake! And one more thing; my six-year-old kids saw your show, and they said it sucked!"

Now Mumbo was getting angry. "Okay, fat man," he said through gritted teeth. "You want to play games? Then let's play a little game called _A or B!_" Mumbo pulled out his wand with his right hand and held it up. "A, you call your people and have them deliver my car this instant and the Titans go free," With his other hand, Mumbo pulled out a device that vaguely looked like a remote control. "Or B, you continue to insult me and the Teen Titans will become deep fried! What will it be?"

"_Gee, those are my choices?" _a voice filled with sarcasm called out. _"Wow, that's a toughie. Let me think a minute...wait, I know! I pick **C**; break your big-ass nose, take the remote, free the Titans, put some clothes on Bird-Boy, and then shove that hat of yours so far up your blue butt that you'll have rabbits hopping out of your ears for the rest of your life!"_

Mumbo looked about frantically for the voice that he didn't recognize. "Who said that?" he demanded."Show yourself, coward! Face a worthy foe!"

"_Up here, numb-nuts."_

Mumbo looked up in the direction of the voice...only to have a cleated boot collide with his face. The force from the blow sent him careening in the direction from wench he came, crashing into a few trash cans clear on the other side of Jump City Square. To no surprise, his nose was broken, and he had dropped his remote in the process. His attacker picked up the remote and pressed the release button, freeing all of the Titans of their restraints. The second that they were free, he crushed the remote with his bear hand. Any additional restraints such as blindfolds and Beast Boy's collar were removed by hand. Since Robin was busy putting his clothes back on, it was Cyborg's duty to act as leader for the moment. He quickly observed their rescuer, taking in every inch of his appearance. Cyborg had never seen this man in his entire life, yet there was something _very_ familiar about him.

"Okay," Cyborg said to their rescuer. "Thanks for saving us and all, but...who are you, anyway?"

"Name's Ricochet," said the man. "Part time hero, part time vigilante, and full-time party animal and wise guy, at your service!" He gave a bow to mock his own speech.

"There's something sickeningly familiar about you," Raven said flatly.

"Yeah, there is." Beast Boy said. "Did we, like, meet you at last year's hero convention, or something?"

"You might say that," said Ricochet. He then took several steps backwards, and took a pose as if he were modeling. "Okay, now picture me in a New York Jets jersey and white bunny slippers..."

Starfire let out a squeal of joy as she figured it out in an instant. She flew towards Ricochet and gave him a loving embrace, spinning him around in gratitude as well.

"Thank you so much, friend Peter!" she exclaimed. "We are all eternally grateful for your vigilance in coming to our rescue."

"Don't mention it," Ricochet said weakly, his voice implying that Starfire had squeezed all the air from his lungs.

"Okay guys," Robin said as he adjusted his belt. "That's enough reunion for now. We still need to stop Mumbo, remember?"

"Uh, dude?" Beast Boy inquired, tapping Robin's shoulder. "I don't think we need to. He looks pretty out of it to me."

Robin looked on and saw Mumbo laying amongst some garbage cans, struggling just to sit up. The Titans and Ricochet quickly made their way over there, stopping and observing him when they made it. Mumbo was barely gripping his wand, and his nose was bleeding badly. Cyborg took Mumbo's wand from him and crushed it with one hand, instantly changing Mumbo back into his human self. Just when Robin was about to signal the police to pick Mumbo up, Ricochet grabbed Mumbo by his shirt and violently lifted him off the ground 'till his feet were a foot from the pavement. Their faces were only inches away from each other.

"Who are you?" Mumbo blurted out angrily.

"I'm Ricochet," he said as coldly as possible. "And I'm gonna make you regret the day picked up a wand for the sole purpose of stealing, pencil-neck."

"Oh yeah?" Mumbo said before spitting in Ricochet's face. "Just try me, you Power Rangers reject!"

"Alright, you David Blaine throw-back," Ricochet barked. "You're gonna tell me who you're working for, and why you're messing with my friends! Tell me in less than twelve words, and maybe I'll consider using you for my neighbor's kid's birthday party."

"What are you talking about!" Mumbo barked back. "I work alone! Always have, always will!"

"I don't have the right kind of patience for stupid questions, and I _don't_ like repeating myself!" Ricochet was clearly furious. **"Now answer me!"**

"I've done told you, I work alone!"

"Tough guy, eh?" Ricochet observed his surroundings looking for ways of good-old-fashioned New York City interrogation. It was then he noticed a nearby fountain, roughly the size of a small swimming pool. It was perfect. He looked back at Mumbo with a twinkle in his eye. "I know _exactly_ what to do with tough guys like you."

Without another word, Ricochet dragged Mumbo behind him with one hand holding on to his shirt. Mumbo struggled to get free, but it was useless. They made it to the fountain, and Ricochet dunked Mumbo's head into the water and held it there, his arms flailing about as he struggled for air. The Titans were right behind him the whole time. While Robin and Starfire were both amazed and appalled at Ricochet's actions, Cyborg and Beast Boy found the torment of Mumbo quite entertaining. Raven...meh. Robin decided that he needed to make a stand.

"Uh, Peter?" said Robin, knowing just like the rest of the Titans that Ricochet was actually Spider-Man in disguise. "You don't need to do that. He _does_ work alone."

"Yeah, I know," said Ricochet calmly as he continued to hold Mumbo's head under water. "I'm just giving him a hard time, that's all. Besides, me and Vic used to do this all the time in New York."

"Hey Pete," Cyborg said with a mischievous look in his eye. "Give him the old _'What's My Name' _treatment."

"Hey, good idea!" Ricochet replied. He then pulled Mumbo out from the water, but didn't give him any time to catch his breath.

"What's my name!" Ricochet yelled in Mumbo's face. Mumbo was in a state of both shock and confusion, and could only reply with incoherent blubbering.

"Oh _hell_ no, that ain't it!" Ricochet spurred before dunking Mumbo's head back in the water. After a few moments, he pulled him back out.

"What's my name!" Ricochet yelled again.

"Ricochet! Ricochet! Ricochet!" Mumbo said, screaming like a little girl.

"You know it!" said Ricochet. "Now why were you punking my friends like that?"

"What?" said Mumbo.

"**Wrong again!"**

Ricochet continued to hold Mumbo's head under water, just like a bully would to a defenseless student with a school toilet. He held him under for less time, and pulled him back up in a few seconds.

"Now who are you working for?" Ricochet barked once again.

"For the last time!" Mumbo said with tears in his eyes. _"I work alone!"_

Even though Mumbo had spilled every ounce of information that Ricochet wanted, Ricochet still wasn't the least bit pleased. He hoisted Mumbo in the air once again, and put his gaze towards Cyborg.

"Well, looks like this joker isn't talking," he said. "Say Vic, what do you say we kick a little field goal?"

Cyborg gave a smile so big that it rivaled Starfire's bubbly grins. "You mean like old times?" he asked.

"_Exactly_ like old times," Ricochet replied as he pointed to his old friend. While Cyborg went to take his position, Ricochet brought the dazed Mumbo over to the curious Starfire.

"Star?" he said. "Would you do the honors of holding him down?"

"Um...very well," Starfire said, unsure of what was going happen. "What must I do?"

"It's simple," said Ricochet. "All you have to do is mash this guy's face in the grass until me and Vic get close to you. When we're at point black range, you move out of the way. Simple as-"

"Oh, I get it!" Starfire beamed, cutting Ricochet off. "It's just like the Earth sport called 'ball of the foot,' when they must send a small object made of animal hide through something that looks like a giant, yellow Terren utincil called a fork."

"Bingo!" Ricochet exclaimed. "That's what I like about you Star. You catch on quick."

With that said, Ricochet left Mumbo in Starfire's hands, who quickly began pressing his face into the dirt. She held him in a manner where he was on his hands and knees, and his butt was up in the air just like a target. The other Titans were now enthralled, (except for Raven,) and eagerly awaited for what was going to happen next. Ricochet and Cyborg each took their positions, and Robin happily took the role of the caller. He held his hand in the air and...

"Three twenty-one!" he called. "Three twenty-one! Rover, set! HUT! HUT!"

After the last call, Cyborg and Ricochet darted towards the pinned Mumbo at breakneck speed. They made it over to his position in seconds, and Starfire moved out of the way just in time. They each kicked Mumbo in the rear so hard that he was sent a good 200 feet in the air, flying at least 15 miles per hour and screaming like a banshee the whole time. Each Titan and everyone around watched as Mumbo soared though the air, landing in a alley between a couple of one-story buildings; a Radio Shack and a flower shop.

"It's good!" Beast Boy exclaimed with both arms in the air. "It's all good!"

"Okay Titans," Robin said with his fist clenched in victory. "Let's get him to the police, and make sure that they throw away the key this time when they lock him up!"

The Teen Titans and Ricochet ran (Raven and Starfire flew) toward the alley where Mumbo had landed. As they entered the dark alley, none of them noticed a dinosaur-like creature hiding amongst the roof-tops. The creature began following them, and amazingly managed to head them off without being noticed. The Titans found Mumbo fast, getting up from a pile of trash left in the alley.

"Alright, Mumbo," Robin said. "This time, the show must _not_ go on."

"Say what you will, meddlesome Titans!" Mumbo said, nose still bleeding and bruises all over his body. "I _will_ escape again, and I shall have my revenge!"

"Dude," said an annoyed Beast Boy. "Would you mind telling us something that we _didn't_ hear a million times before?"

This time, Mumbo didn't get to answer. Just before he could remark, a large, green tendril that looked like a giant snake tail wrapped it's end around Mumbo's neck, pulling the screaming magician to the roof-top at lightning speed. The Titans were each shocked, and even more set aback from the blood-curdling screams heard afterward. They each listened with pale faces, fearing the worst of what could happen next. They heard screaming, pleads for mercy, something that sounded like a roar, the sounds of flesh being torn apart and bones being broken, and then...nothing.

At first, the Titans were silent. They waited, horror-struck for what was going to happen next.

"Hey Pete," Cyborg whispered. "You think that was Venom?"

"No," said Ricochet, his voice slightly shaken. "My Spider-Sense is going off the wall, so it can't be Venom or Carnage."

Cyborg shuddered at Ricochet's last remark. "Man, did you have bring him up?"

"Sorry..." Ricochet shrugged.

Raven half-thought about why Cyborg became disdained over the word carnage, but put it off the second she heard Starfire and Beast Boy scream in fear. Raven and all the other Titans looked up, and saw something leap from the roof-top and land where Mumbo was before, denting the concrete upon impact. The creature they saw was like something they would see in a museum, or even a story book. It was obviously of reptilian origin, but nothing like a lost dinosaur. It had a raptor-like head, and was covered in green scales. It had legs like a T-rex, only it's torso and arms were more human-like. It stood at about eight feet tall, and was roughly seventeen feet long from the tip of it's snout to the end of it's tail. It's fangs were dripping with blood, blatantly pointing out that he had just made a meal out of the Amazing Mumbo. It looked as if it were made completely of muscle, and strangely enough, it was wearing a blood-stained white lab-coat and torn blue jeans.

This creature was none other that one of Spider-Man's many nemeses; The Lizard.

Before anyone could react, The Lizard leaped towards the Titans with his claws forward as he let out an ear-piercing screech. The Titans scattered while Ricochet leaped backwards, the Lizard's claws barely missing him and putting claw-marks in the concrete and alley walls. Ricochet retaliated by hoisting up a dumpster and hurling it towards the Lizard, but the Lizard caught it and tossed it aside, spilling even more garbage everywhere. The Lizard lunged at Ricochet again, but this time fell to the ground as he was caught inside a steel net that Robin had stored in one of his devices. It didn't appear to be much help, for the Lizard began tearing through the net like tissue paper.

"Titans! Out of the alleys!" Robin commanded. "We can fight him better out in the open!"

Raven and Starfire took to the air, Beast Boy doing the same as she changed into a pigeon. Ricochet, Robin, and Cyborg each ran back the way they came when they were chasing Mumbo.

"What is that thing?" Robin asked Ricochet as he ran next to him, Cyborg running right behind them.

"Long story!" Ricochet said hastily. "I'll tell you the second we knock him out!"

They each made it safely outside, but the Lizard was less than a second behind. He made it out, furious as ever. The Teen Titans turned to face him, ready for battle with this monster.

"Titans! GO!"

Starfire fired her eye-bolts straight towards the Lizard, hitting him in the chest and knocking him off balance momentarily. Cyborg finished the move with a blast from his sonic-cannon, sending the Lizard careening backwards. He recovered in seconds, and now had Robin on his case. Robin attacked with all his might; punches, kicks, everything he could muster. Although the Lizard was phased by each attack, he didn't appear to be taking any actual damage. Robin took an opportunity to draw his staff, but instead took a hard blow to the gut from the Lizard's knee. Cyborg and Ricochet each came in from behind in an attempt to pin him down. Ricochet jumped on the Lizard's back and threw his arms around his neck, while Cyborg grabbed his tail. Both were mistakes, for Cyborg was flung away by the Lizard's tail as it whipped around, and Ricochet was pulled off of his back with the Lizard's bare hands. The Lizard looked Ricochet in the eye, and then tossed him all the way to the fountain where he tortured Mumbo.

"Alright dudes!" Beast Boy proudly exclaimed. "Sit back and watch the show, 'cause Dr. Scales is about to take on the lizard king himself!"

With that said, Beast Boy changed into a T-rex and roared as he charged the unsuspecting Lizard.

"Beast Boy, NO!" Ricochet yelled as he came out of the fountain.

Too late. Just when Beast Boy was at ramming point, the Lizard turned around and shot his gaze straight at Beast Boy. Beast Boy froze in his tracks, and his eyes glazed over. Before anyone knew what was going on, Beast Boy turned away from the Lizard and started attacking the Titans.

_Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!_

Raven hurled several cars in Beast Boy's direction, though only a few of them collided. While they hindered Beast Boy in some way, it didn't stop him from attacking his friends. Cyborg fired blast after blast from his sonic-cannon while Robin sent every birderang he had. Starfire fired tons of star-bolts, though she had no intention of hurting her friend.

"I do not understand," Starfire cried as she dodged Beast Boy's swinging tail. "Why is friend Beast Boy attacking us!"

"That's one of the Lizard's powers!" Ricochet yelled as he dodged a truck that the Lizard threw at him. "He can coax other reptiles into helping him using hypnosis!"

"Hypnosis?" It was then that Starfire remembered how to snap Beast Boy out of hypnosis; make him laugh. But how? It had to be something that Beast Boy found absolutely hysterical, and she had to act fast. She then saw Robin get sent crashing through a window of a nearby building, and she quickly rushed to his side.

"Are you alright?" she asked, her voice filled with concern.

"I'm fine," Robin said as he stood back up. "Just a few-hey, what the?" Robin was surprised, to say the least, when Starfire had lifted him up by his shoulders and flew back outside. They came to the hypnotized Beast Boy, who was now doing battle with Raven and Cyborg.

"Beast Boy!" Starfire called out. Beast Boy turned his attention from Raven and Cyborg and shot his glance at Starfire, who was still carrying the bewildered Robin. "Observe this!"

Robin was shocked when Starfire reached into the back of his pants and grabbed the hilt of his boxer shorts. "Starfire?" he asked, terror struck. "What are you doing!"

"Please forgive me, friend Robin," Starfire said, tears building in her eyes. "But it is the only way to free Beast Boy of his mental bondage. Do brace yourself..."

With that said, Starfire closed her eyes and let go of Robin's shoulder, still holding on to his underwear. Robin fell down to the point where his underwear was way over his head, and never in his life had he ever been in so much physical pain as his undergarments went into places he'd rather not mention. His face was contorted with agony, and red with embarrassment and humiliation as the world could see his hot-pink boxer shorts, (hey, everyone has fetishes.) Raven and Cyborg were both wide-eyed with shock, and Beast Boy had reverted back to his human form as he rolled on the ground with laughter.

"Good one!" Beast Boy said. He stopped laughing the second he realized that he was hypnotized...again. "Aw, man..."

Just then, the Lizard began attacking the unsuspecting Titans. He had apparently dealt with Ricochet, and now his focus was fixed on Raven. He had grabbed the surprised Raven by her leg, and effortlessly flung her across the square. She landed with a thud onto a newsstand, and the Lizard was charging straight for her. Raven had staggered to her feet, and was in no shape to cast a spell. The Lizard was now less then ten feet from her, and she prepared for the worst. But suddenly, the Lizard fell flat on his face, and was now being dragged backwards. Raven looked on, and saw Cyborg taking hold of the Lizard's tail again. His mechanical eye was glowing an almost demonic red, and his teeth were grinding feverishly.

"You stay the hell away from my Rae, you son of a hand bag!" Cyborg exclaimed as he began to spin the Lizard in circles, building up speed for a king-sized throw down. He had spun several circles, and had thrown the Lizard into a nearby gas truck. The truck's load had exploded upon impact, the Lizard taking the full brunt. When the smoke cleared, the Lizard was down for the count. Satisfied with his work, Cyborg rushed towards Raven's side to see if she was okay.

"You hurt?" Cyborg asked.

"Just my pride." said Raven.

"Uh, excuse me?" a muffled voice called out "A little help, please?"

Raven and Cyborg turned to see Ricochet, half-buried under the debris of a fallen wall. With a wave of Raven's hand, the rubble was lifted up and cast aside. Ricochet got up and brushed the dust from his jacket, mumbling about how hard it would be to clean it later on. Starfire carried Robin over to the trio, since her attempt to make Beast Boy laugh and snap him out of hypnosis had temporarily robbed him of the ability to walk.

While the Titans regrouped, Beast Boy went to observe the fallen reptile. He was out cold, and some parts of his scales were burnt to a crisp. He was still breathing steadily, and was showing signs that he would pull through. Just when Beast Boy was about to leave, he noticed something unusual clamped to the back of the Lizard's neck.

"Dudes!" he practically screamed. "Over here! Quick!"

Ricochet and the Titans quickly rushed to the flailing Beast Boy, and reacted with awe at what they had seen. A small device roughly the size of a dinner plate was grafted into the back of the Lizard's neck, a blinking light signaling that it was malfunctioning. Without hesitation, Ricochet quickly ripped the device right off, spilling some kind of serum everywhere. The Lizard screeched as he began to convulse, arms, legs, and tail flailing about in all directions. The convulsions ended within seconds, and he began to change. He had down sized drastically, and the scales were being replaced with human flesh. His tail shrunk down, his claws vanished, his raptor head was replaced with a human head with blonde hair, and his right arm had shrunk down to a stub.

Now, the Lizard was gone; Dr. Connors was back.

"C'mon," Ricochet said calmly. "Let's get him back to the tower."

**End Of Chapter Seven**

_Whew! Man, that took forever. First off, I'd like to thank everyone for the generous reviews so far. Next, I'd like to thank Vandagirl519 once again for giving me the writing advice in the beginning. That's where I got the A or B idea. Thank you! I know that your profile is now Vandagirl, but you'll always be Vanagirl519 to me! _

_Next, I'd like to thank TalonTheIcon for reading and generously reviewing, and I'd like to clear up one think that some people found slightly offensive on my part._ _In chapter five, I believe, I had Cyborg refer to the Bible as a story book. Do note that those weren't my personal feelings, but merely my best attempts to keep Cyborg in character. In the Teen Titans comic books, (the new one, anyway, not Teen Titans GO!) Cyborg and his family were very religious, but Cyborg lost virtually all of his faith the day he lost his humanity. _

_I believe in the Bible too, and I think that it's a history book, not a story._

_Once again, my sincerest apologies for offending anyone. Peace._

_Now, to begin chapter eight!_


	9. Chapter Eight

**Chapter Eight**

**Angry Wife and Hurt Feelings**

The Teen Titans had made it safely back to Titans Tower withthe out-cold Dr. Connors in their custody. Cyborg took the Doctor to the sick bay while Spider-Man took the object that he tore from the Lizard's neck to his room so he could study it. Raven, Robin, and Starfire each joined Cyborg in the sick bay in order to find out what the deal was with this Lizard guy, and to find out if he came on his own accord. Beast Boy simply went to play some Gamestation in order to forget the freak show that happened today. They found that Cyborg had placed the doctor on one of the medical beds, a life support machine hooked to him as well.

"How is he?" Robin asked.

"He'll be fine." said Cyborg. "The life support machine is flushing the remaining serum out of his veins, so he should be awake soon."

"Listen Cyborg," Robin said. "Spidey told me that this guy was one of his enemies. Since you're old friends with Spidey, I want you to tell me everything you know about him."

Cyborg raised his eyebrow in confusion at Robin. "Why you asking me? Why not ask Spidey?"

"We have tried," said Starfire. "But he was insistent that he take that strange machine to his room. We did not get the opportunity to gather information on this reptilian menace."

"Sorry," said Cyborg as he shrugged his shoulders. "But all I know is that he used to be one of Pete's teachers, that he lost his arm during his years as a military field medic, and he likes to play blackjack. Other than that, I don't know the first thing about him."

"Alright then," said Robin as he stretched his arms. "I'll see if I can coax Spidey out of his room. Thanks anyway, Cy."

"No problem." said Cyborg as he went back to the machine.

With that said, Robin and Starfire left the room towards Spider-Man's room. Raven, however, remained with Cyborg. She stayed in order to do something that she didn't want her friends to see, even though all she wanted to do was thank Cyborg for saving her life. She made her way to Cyborg's side, and...

"Cyborg?" she said.

"Yeah, Rae?" Cyborg said, eyes still fixed on the monitor as he typed away on the keyboard.

"I..." she paused for a moment, taking a breath so her powers wouldn't destroy the monitor. Why she was feeling so nervous, she had no idea. "I wanted to thank you...for saving me back there."

Cyborg smiled as he looked back at Raven, making her feel a bit light for a moment. "No problem Rae," he said as he ruffled her hair. "The last thing I want is one of my best friends becoming an appetizer for a giant gecko."

Raven frowned at Cyborg messing up her hair, but she didn't mind that much. Because deep down, particularly her happy emotion, she liked the feeling. In fact, she was tempted to ask him to do it again. But before she got the chance, an annoying beeping sound came from Cyborg's arm.

"That's odd," said Cyborg with a look of wonder. "Only the Titans and a few other people in the whole world know my emergency line...better take the silent tone."

Cyborg opened up his arm panel and pressed a few buttons, then he waited for a tone letting him know it worked.

"Hello?" he asked. Suddenly his human eye grew very wide, and his red eye looked like it was going on the fritz. He then did his best to maintain composure as a sheepish smile went across his face.

"Oh, hi Mary-Jane..."

Meanwhile, Robin and Starfire walked through the hallway heading for Spider-Man's room. Well, Starfire walked. Robin was still injured from Starfire's super-wedgie needed to snap Beast Boy out of his trance, so he limped his way through the hall. Starfire couldn't bear to see her friend in so much pain, so she felt the need to apologize.

"Robin?" she asked with a soft voice.

"Yeah Star?" said Robin, not looking at her.

Starfire lowered her head. "I am exceedingly sorry about what I have done to you today. I can only imagine what pain it has caused you, and the humiliation to boot..."

Starfire halted in her tracks as she felt an arm wrap itself around her shoulder. She looked to her left and met eyes with Robin. Despite his physical condition, he was smiling. This made Starfire smile too, and her eyes brightened up a bit.

"It's okay, Starfire," he said. "You did what you had to do. If you didn't give me that wedgie, Beast Boy would probably still be under control by the Lizard, and we'd still be fighting right now. What you did ensured the safety of the team. And if that means a few hours of discomfort for me, then it's all worth it in the end as far as I'm concerned."

"In that case," said Starfire as she gave a beautiful smile. "I am happy to be of service."

Robin and Starfire continued to head towards Spider-Man's room, now holding hands as they did so. They made it to his room in little time, and just when Robin was about to knock...

"Come on in." Peter's muffled voice said through the door. Starfire and Robin were a bit surprised at this.

"How did he know that we were out here?" asked Starfire. Robin thought for a moment, then decided on one possibility.

"Must be his spider-sense he told us about." he said. Robin then pressed the panel on the door's left and it slid open. Robin and Starfire then entered Peter's room, and observed it as they walked. His room was quite plain for a super hero of his status. A bed with red covers, a red couch, blue carpet, a bookshelf loaded with books about advanced science, a table with some lab equipment, and another table used for examination. Peter was sitting at the examination table, back in his relaxation clothes. He was still tinkering with that device that was clamped onto the Lizard's head, and a look of determination bestowed upon his face.

"What's up, guys?" said Peter, not taking his eyes from the device.

"We came to ask you about the Lizard," said Robin. "For starters, how did he know you were here?"

Peter turned in his rotating chair, holding the small machine in his lap. He then stood up and held the device forward.

"This is how," he said. "You see, his real name is Doctor Connors, and he used to be my old college professor. But that was only a side-job. He real work was in genetic engineering, constantly trying to find ways to regrow lost limbs. In case Vic hasn't already told you, Connors was once a medic for the marines. While treating two injured allies in Vietnam, a mortar landed less then ten feet away. His patients were both killed, and he lost his arm."

"That is horrible," said Starfire in sullen voice.

"I know," said Peter. "Anyway, he was studying reptile DNA and looked for ways to combine the strands with human DNA. Reptiles, particularly small lizards, have an ability to regrow a limb when it's lost. Connors dove into this, and eventually created a serum that would develop a surplus of healing cells, ultimately regrowing lost bone and tissue. Problem was, he couldn't get a volunteer for the procedure. Out of desperation, he used the serum on himself. At the moment, it appeared to be a success. His lost arm grew back in seconds, and he had complete control and feeling."

"Let me guess," said Robin. "The serum was flawed, and had a reaction to his DNA. Then he mutated into that Lizard we saw today."

"Yes and no," said Peter. "Here, take a look at--"

Just before he could finish his sentence, Cyborg came barging in with a mortified look on his face. The three in the room each became instantly concerned, and even worried that maybe someone else was in the tower.

"What's wrong, Vic?" said Peter with an undertone of worry.

"You're not gonna believe this Spidey," said Cyborg as he frantically pointed at his arm-panel. "Mary-Jane is on hold right now, and she is _pissed!_"

Peter's face turned deathly pale when he heard those words. He dropped the device to the floor, and slowly walked to the exit.

"Think I'll take this one in the living room." he said in a low voice.

When Peter exited his room, Robin, Starfire, and Cyborg followed suit. Raven was standing right outside his door, and Beast Boy was standing just at the end of the hallway. Each of them followed the zombie-like Peter, and all except Cyborg were wondering what was going on. During the walk, Starfire couldn't help but notice Raven's ruffled hair. Peter made it to the living room soon enough, where he tapped into it's emergency line. The Titans each stood at the living room's entryway, awaiting what was going to happen. The screen flickered on, showing a sheet of static.

"Mary-Jane?" Peter asked, half scared to death.

Just then the screen flickered to life, revealing a furious red-head.

"Peter Parker!" she yelled. The force and volume of her voice sent Peter careening backwards, crashing into the wall behind him and leaving a 'Peter' shaped dent where he hit. He slumped down to the floor, his eyes spiraling about in a crazed fashion.

"Where have you been?" Mary-Jane asked in a furious tone. "You leave New York without a word, or even a note for that matter, you go missing for almost a month, and now I see you on TV in your Ricochet outfit fighting alongside the Teen Titans! Why did you leave without telling me first? Don't you know that I've been so worried about you that I vomit every morning?"

Peter shook off his dazed state, scrambled to his feet, and darted back towards the TV.

"May-Jane, I can explain everything!" he said. "Venom's after me again. I couldn't tell you because I was afraid he would hurt you if you knew! I hid here because it's the last place he'll ever look, if at all. I know I should have told you, but I couldn't take the chance! If something happened to you, I..."

Mary-Jane's look on the screen softened up a bit, but she still had a stern demeanor to her.

"Well," she said. "I guess I can forgive you, but you're going to be in a lot of trouble when you get back, mister!"

"Fair enough," said Peter. "Sorry, Mary-Jane."

"It's alright, Peter," said Mary-Jane, her face now soft and filled with worry. "I was just worried, that's all. Please be careful...I don't want to lose you again."

Peter then looked up at the screen and into her eyes. "Me neither, Mary-Jane."

With that, the screen went blank. Peter let out a sigh of relief, but at the same time was disappointed. The Teen Titans also came in with surprised looks on their faces, (except for Cyborg and Raven.)

"Friend Peter?" said Starfire. "If you do not mind me asking, how is it that the Jane of the Mary knew that it was you in disguise fighting along side us?" Peter couldn't help but chuckle at Starfire's term for Mary-Jane's name.

"She's the one that made the costume," he said sheepishly. "Long story short, I went under the name of Ricochet when an old enemy of mine framed me for murder. Mary-Jane dug up some old materials, found a leather jacket, and created my temporary alter-ego until the whole fiasco was solved."

"Framed for murder," Raven said sarcastically. "I bet that happens a lot with you."

Peter fell to the floor with the king of all face-faults. "You still don't trust me, do you?" he said with half of his face planted on the ground.

"No," said Raven, straight up and flat as ever.

"It must suck to be you, dude," said Beast Boy with a chuckle. "Your wife has got you on a leash. Maybe you should change your name to Spider-Dog!" While nobody else was impressed, Beast Boy began a fit of laughter. Peter scrambled to the floor, and then flamboyantly put his arms to his sides and gave a cocky smile.

"Whatever you say, Dr. Phil," he said. "You're just jealous 'cause you don't have a beautiful squeeze to push you around." Peter then crossed his arms, grinned, and closed his eyes expecting a few laughs. Instead, he got silence, followed by the sound of sad foot-steps leaving the living room and entering the hallway. He opened one eye, and Robin, Cyborg, Starfire, and Raven were all giving him quite an unpleasant look. His smile disappeared, his arms went limp, and his shoulders slumped.

"I just did something incredibly stupid, didn't I?" The four remaining Titans only nodded in response. "Figures." said Peter. "I'll be back in an hour..."

With that, Peter left the living room and walked after Beast Boy so he could apologize. Starfire's stern look then fell, and she grew a look of concern.

"Perhaps we should have informed friend Peter of the tragedy that has struck friends Beast Boy and Terra?" said Starfire.

"Yeah," said Robin. "I just hope BB doesn't take it to hard..."

"_Excuse me,"_ an unfamiliar, worn-out voice called out. _"Could any of you tell me where I am?"_

The Titans looked in the direction of the voice, witnessing a rather flushed looking Dr. Connors standing in the corridor. The one arm he had held his stomach as if he had indigestion, all the while a look of bewilderment was upon his face. Robin made his way to the doctor so that he could explain the situation. He brought Dr. Connors to the couch, and urged him to sit down.

"Hey Cyborg," said Robin. "Why don't you order us some pizza? This might take a while." Cyborg did as instructed, and Robin looked back at the doctor. "You want something to eat?"

"No, thank you," said Connors as he continued to painfully clench his stomach. "Apparently, I've already eaten my fill. Some tea and maybe something to counter my heartburn would be nice, if it isn't to much trouble."

Nothing more needed to be said. Raven walked towards the stove to put the kettle on while Starfire went to the medicine cabinet to find some anti-acid pills. The tea was made, Starfire found the pills, and both were brought to Dr. Connors.

"Thank you," he said after downing three pills and sipping his tea. "Now, would any of you mind telling me where I am?"

"Sure," said Robin as he sat at the other end of the couch. "You're in Jump City, and-" Robin's words were cut off as Dr. Connors spit some of his tea out. The doctor then looked at Robin with a perplexed look on his face.

"Jump City?" he said in shock. "How in the blue blazes did I end up here?"

Now it was Robin's turn to be perplexed. "How did you get here?" he said. "You mean you don't remember?"

"No.." said Dr. Connors with worry in his voice. "In fact, I can barely remember anything. The last thing I do remember was heading towards my car after work, when suddenly I felt a sharp pain in the back of my neck that caused me to pass out. When I came to, I was strapped down to an operation table inside a lab, where I could hear two men talking in the other room. I couldn't make out what they were saying exactly, but it had something to do with a lethal protector...anyway, another man came in with some horrid looking machine and clamped it onto the back of my neck. After that, I blacked out..."

"Okay then," said Robin. "Did you get a good idea of what the guys in the other room sounded like?"

"More or less," said Dr. Connors. "One of them spoke in a smooth voice, while the other seemed to have a very light East European accent of some kind. Possibly German, or Austrian."

Robin thought about it for a moment. Didn't sound like any of the villains he ever fought. Perhaps they were some more of Spider-Man's enemies? The lethal protector the doctor mentioned _had_ to be Venom, and it was anyone else's guess as to who the two talkers were. All that Robin knew was that whoever they were, they captured this Dr. Connors, turned him into the Lizard, and sent him after Spider-Man. Now, it was for certain. Somebody wanted Spider-Man dead. Whoever they were, they were getting his own nemeses to do it for them. First Venom, now the Lizard. Now that Robin thought about it, maybe it wasn't such a good idea to let Cyborg's friend stay there after all?

* * *

Speaking of which, Peter had followed Beast Boy all the way to the roof of Titans Tower. There he saw Beast Boy sitting at the edge, his legs hanging off while he rested his chin in his hands. The moonlight reflected off the surface of the ocean and onto his face, adding an even more gloomy attribute to his glum facial expression.

"_Perfect,"_ Peter thought sarcastically. _"Looks like I win the idiot prize for the day. Let's hope an apology is all he needs."_

He slowly approached Beast Boy, and stopped when he was about two feet behind him. Now was the best time of any, so...

"Hey," Peter said in a low voice. He felt like slapping himself in the face for starting with a simple _hey._

"Hey yourself," Beast Boy said with so little emotion that it rivaled Raven's monotone voice.

"Look," Peter continued. "About what I said earlier...if I struck a nerve and all...for what it's worth, I'm sorry."

"It's okay, dude," said Beast Boy. "You didn't know. I probably should have told you earlier..." The whole time Beast Boy spoke, he didn't look at Peter even once. He paused for a moment, and lowered his head even further. Just then, a pang of anger and sorrow struck him. "What do you care, anyway?" he said. "It's not like you know what it's like to lose a loved one.."

Didn't know what it was like to lose a loved one? That's where Beast Boy was horribly wrong. Not only did he know what it was like to lose someone you love, but he knew what it was like to throw it away. That was _much_ worse than losing someone. He lost Gwen Stacey, but he threw his uncle Ben's life away out of sheer arrogance. But instead of getting angry at Beast Boy, he decided that it was time for a little lesson in life. Peter sat next to Beast Boy and put his arm around his shoulder, the same way his uncle Ben used to do to him.

"Let me tell you a little something about losing a loved one, BB," he said with a calm but serious tone. Beast Boy took a look at Peter's face, and the humor filled wise guy that was Peter Parker was replaced with a stern looking parental figure.

"Believe me," he continued. "I know exactly what it feels like to loose somebody you love. Let me tell you a little story about heartache, kid. I was never a popular guy in high school. I was such a science geek, even the nerds and outcasts didn't want hang out with me. I had zero friends, and even less of a social life. But despite the fact that I was socially anorexic, there were three people that I could always count on. Two of them were my Uncle Ben and Aunt May. Care to take a guess as to who the third one was?"

Beast Boy was a bit stumped. "Uh...Mary-Jane?" he said.

"Close," said Peter. "But not quite. I didn't get close to Mary-Jane until after I got my powers. No, my first love was a girl named Gwen Stacey. That girl had it all; looks, kindness, intelligence, and nice parents as well. While all the jocks, cheerleaders, and heart-throbs were busy kicking dirt in my eye, Gwen was there to wash it out. Even after we broke up, we were still the best of friends."

"What happened to her?" Beast Boy asked.

Peter paused for a moment. "That's the most painful part," he finally said. "An old enemy of mine, the Green Goblin, kidnaped Gwen so he could coax me into a trap. I chased him down by web-swinging while he flew on his jet-powered glider, carrying Gwen over his shoulder. He led me to the Brooklyn Bridge, where he made me make a sadistic choice. He flew to the very tip of the bridge, where he hurled Gwen towards the ocean and to her doom. And that's the choice I had to make; stop the villain, or save the girl."

"When I made it to the bridge, I could see Gwen plummeting to her doom. She was too far for me to reach by jumping after her and catching her. Without any other choice, I shot some webbing towards her in an attempt to save. When my web connected with her back, I wasted no time in pulling her back up. But when I pulled her up..."

He paused again, this time letting out an uneasy sigh. "...she was already dead. Her neck was broken."

After that, there was a long pause between the both of them. Beast Boy was both shocked and amazed at Peter's story. There was definitely more to the web-head than he and the Titans initially thought. Peter finally broke the silence, and buried his forehead into his free hand.

"You want to know the worst part?" he finally said. "To this day, I still don't know if she was already dead when the Goblin threw her...or if it was the impact of my webbing that halted her momentum and broke her neck..."

"Dude..." said Beast Boy in a voice so low that it was barely even audible. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Just giving you a life-lesson," Peter said as he looked back at Beast Boy. "Gwen Stacey wasn't the only one I lost. My Uncle Ben died when I was only 17, and just recently my Aunt May passed away. But no matter how hard things got, no matter how tough the road would be, I always found the strength to move on. I don't like the fact that my Uncle Ben was killed before I graduated high school, but I'm glad that I had him for as long as I did. If it wasn't for him, Spider-Man, and probably Peter Parker wouldn't be in this world. I owe it all to him, and the words that I live by. Want to hear them?"

Beast Boy only nodded in response.

"With great power," Peter continued. "Comes great responsibility. Suppose there's a crisis at hand that threatens you, your friends, your family, your loved ones, or even a bystander. If you're able to stop it, or even assist in stopping it, not only is it your ability...but it's also your responsibility. Bad things will happen along the way, and at some moments all seems lost. But no matter what happens, no matter who or what's in your way, and no matter how many friends or family you may lose...you must always find the strength and the courage needed to continue. Such is life."

Beast Boy felt moved, even lifted by Peter's speech. Nobody in the whole wide world never spoke to him like that, not even his own father. This was definitely a welcome change from the usual _'be careful not to screw up this time' _speech that Robin constantly through at him. Beast Boy smiled back at Peter, feeling like he had just had one of the best days of his life.

"Thanks, dude." said Beast Boy as he held out his hand to Peter.

"No problem," Peter said as he shook Beast Boy's hand. "So, no hard feelings?"

"What hard feelings?" BB joked as he smiled.

"Spidey! BB!" Cyborg yelled all the way from the kitchen, causing to two to jump slightly. "You two better get your butts down here before the pizzas get cold!"

"Coming!" Peter yelled back. "C'mon," he said as he patted Beast Boy on the back. "I'll race you to the kitchen!"

With that, Peter leaped to his feat and darted back into the tower. Beast Boy was about to follow suit, but halted when he got to the door. He looked behind him before he entered, taking on last look at the moon.

"Good night, Terra," he said sullenly. "I miss you...so much..."

With that said, Beast Boy changed into a cheetah and darted after Peter.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Chapter Eight is finally done! So, what did you guys think of Spidey's conversation with BB? I'm shooting for a father/son relationship with them, since BB never had much parental guidance in the comic books. Now, time to begin chapter nine! 


	10. Chapter Nine

**Chapter Nine**

**The Bargain**

Richard led Spawn through a grand and extravagant hall, made purely from white marble and decorated with beautiful flowers. Needless to say, Spawn looked out of place in an area such as that. Soon they came to an enormous double-door made from perfectly hand-carved mahogany. And angelic insignia was placed in the middle of the dual doors, and they had handles made of solid gold. Strangely, no guards of any kind could be seen. Richard stood aside, and held his hand out towards the door as he looked at Spawn.

"Go, Hellspawn," he said. "She's waiting for you."

Just then the doors slowly began to open, almost as if it wanted to give Spawn a dramatic entrance. Spawn then proceeded to enter, taking big, slow steps. When he went through the doors, he came into what looked like a scene from a King Arthur story. Difference was that it was much more elaborate than any dark age time. The walls were made of marble, and a round table made of the finest oak dominated most of the room. Chairs were placed all around the table, and the same insignia on the door could be seen on the table. A big and much more elaborate chair was directly across from Spawn, no doubt where the head honcho sat.

Just then the doors behind him closed, causing Spawn to look behind him in surprise.

"_So,"_ a female voice called out to him. _"The infamous General of Hell's Army. The bane of a thousand angles, the demise of light, the very scourge of the universe, and the pawn of Malebolgia himself. One of Heaven's worst and most feared foes, and now he stands before me..."_

Spawn didn't like the sound of that. Maybe this was a trick after all? He turned to the direction that voice he heard came from and took a defensive stance. His cloak began to flail about wildly, and his chains came out like cobras just before they would strike.

"Show yourself, coward!" Spawn barked. "I'm not in the mood for hide-and-seek!"

Spawn's call didn't go unanswered. A beam of light descended from the stained-glass window above him, pouring down directly in front of him. Just then a figure formed inside the light, and for a moment it grew so bright that Spawn could feel it pour through his body. Being a creature of darkness, this didn't bode with him well. When the light faded, Spawn met eyes with the one who was watching him.

She truly was what an angle should look like. She had long, beautiful brown hair and light-blue eyes. Her skin was a perfect cream color, with not even a single wrinkle or blemish. She wore a white robe with a golden lace around her waist, and she was a little bit taller than Richard. On her back were two white feathered wings, and her smile was bright enough to light even the darkest places. As Spawn continued to observe her, the only thing missing was a halo above her head. But above all, there were no words that could describe how beautiful she was. The only angels that Spawn ever met were soldiers and bounty hunters, so this woman was a welcome change.

"Who are you?" said Spawn in a low voice.

"My name is Cynthia," she said in a soothing voice. "I am the one who sent Richard to retrieve you."

Cynthia motioned her hand towards a chair that pulled out seemingly by itself. "Would like to sit down?" she asked.

"I'd rather stand," Spawn said coldly.

"Suit yourself," said Cynthia as she sat down. "Now then, I suppose it's safe to assume that you know why you're here?"

"Yes," said Spawn. "The one who calls himself Richard said that something called the Grand Council had a proposal for me. But from where I'm standing, it seems that this council doesn't exist. If this is so, and that this entire plot was just a trap for me, then say so now."

"You have nothing to fear," Cynthia said in an assuring tone. "The proposal that you speak of is as real as the air you breath back on Earth. However, the Grand Council that you speak of does not exist, and never has. I'm afraid that it was only a ruse created by Richard. Do know that it was only for your enticement to come."

At first, Spawn said nothing. He felt angry over the fact that he was lied to, but he didn't make a very big deal about it. After being lied to for virtually all his life as both a human and a Hellspawn, he was almost used to it by now.

"Fine," he scoffed. "But do know that I have a very bad temper. You'd best tell me what this proposal is, before I lose what little patients I have..."

"Very well," said Cynthia. "Then listen very closely, for I will only say this once...do you know of the demon known as Trigon?"

"No..." said Spawn.

"He's a powerful demon," Cynthia continued. "He's the Gatekeeper of Hell, and the one who's destined to destroy the universe through his jewel...his daughter, Raven. Darkness will befall the land, the sky will burn red, flesh will become stone, and the sun will set, never to rise again."

"Sad story," said Spawn with sarcasm. "How does this involve me?"

"Simple," said Cynthia. "We have called you here because you have succeeded where countless of our finest warriors have failed..."

Cynthia then stood up, her graceful wings spreading out.

"You, a renegade Hellspawn, have defeated the Violator, the eldest of the Brothers of Chaos, and Malebolgia's second in command. We need you, your strength, your power, and your hatred for those that dwell in the underworld."

"Let me guess," said Spawn. "You want to prevent the end of time, but in order to do that you need me to kill Raven and Trigon."

"Yes," said Cynthia. "But I'm afraid that you're only half-correct. We do wish for you to destroy Trigon, but it won't be that simple. And you must not kill Raven. Although she is the daughter of Trigon, she is also a hero among Earth. She is part of a super hero team known as the Teen Titans, and she fights in the name of good. No, you must not kill her."

"Instead," she continued. "You must free her of her father's influence..."

"Free her?" Spawn spat angrily as his cloak spread out on each side. "I can't free her! You're the angel! Why don't you free her?"

"We can't," she said. "Though Raven fights in the name of peace, she's still a creature of darkness. Bathing her in our holy light will only result in her demise. Therefore, you must channel your dark powers through her mind, and free her of Trigon's mental bondage."

"How the hell am I supposed to do that?" yelled the now furious Spawn. "I'm a Hellspawn! I can only end life, not create it!"

Cynthia smiled as she stepped closer to Spawn.

"That," she said. "Is where you are mistaken. You don't know this, but you are more powerful than you believe. When you were given the rank of Hell's General, you were given a fraction of Malebolgia's power. That means that your power is truly limited to one thing..."

Spawn calmed down, and his cape ceased it's spontaneous swaying.

"And what might that be?" said Spawn, still doubtful.

"Your imagination," said Cynthia. "You can utilize your powers to do virtually anything that you desire, with the exception of becoming human again...oh, and I failed to mention earlier. Trigon is the son of Malebolgia..."

This finally caught Spawn's interest. "You're certain of this?" he said.

"Of course," said Cynthia. "If you destroy Trigon, not only will you save mankind, but you will also take Malbolgia's heart the same way he took yours."

"It's up to you, Hellspawn," Cynthia continued. "You can free Raven, destroy Trigon and save the universe...or you can continue to live as a creature of the undead. What will it be?"

There was a long silence between the two.

"Other than ridding my master of his offspring," said Spawn. "What's in it for me?"

Cynthia smiled at his question. She thought that at this point, he'd never ask.

"Your redemption." she said, causing Spawn to grow weak in the knees. "You will lose your powers as a Hellspawn, and you'll earn your place here in Heaven. Your red cloak will be exchanged for golden armor and white feathered wings. Your charred flesh will finally heal, and you eternal pain will come to it's end."

"Now," she said as she held her hand out. "Do we have a bargain?"

How could Spawn possibly refuse? He was being offered the one thing he truly desired over everything else. At last, after nearly two decades of suffering, his curse would finally be lifted. He took Cynthia's hand into his own."

"We have a bargain." he said. "Where's the girl?"

"She's located in a place called Jump City," said Cynthia. "When her sole is free, Richard will show you the door to Trigon's lair. From that point, there's no turning back."

"What's the catch?" said Spawn, letting Cynthia's hand go.

"There is only one consequence to this deed," Cynthia said, her voice going low. "When Trigon is destroyed, his greatest servant will return to flesh and bone. Though he will lose Trigon's powers gifted to him, he is still a great threat to the world...especially to the Teen Titans. His name is Slade..."

"Sounds like a small price to pay for saving the world and earning my freedom," said Spawn. "I'll do it. When Trigon is gone, I'll watch over the Titans...and keep an eye on this _Slade_ character."

Just then Spawn was engulfed in the brightest of light, causing him to lose his sight for a moment. He could feel himself sinking into the ground, and he quickly felt like he was falling.

"_Go now, Hellspawn,"_ said Cynthia's voice. _"Make for Jump City. Free Raven's soul, destroy the Gatekeeper, save mankind from it's demise, and earn your redemption and your place in Heaven."_

The light faded, and darkness was all Spawn could see...

When Spawn came to, he found himself back at the church where he met Richard. It was daytime now, and the sun bathed all of New York in it's light. Spawn scoffed at the light, and leaped from the roof of the church and landed gracefully in the alleys below.

"It's a long way from New York to Jump City," he said to himself. "I'd best travel by nightfall. I'll draw less unwanted attention that way..."

Just then, Spawn sensed something that he was all-to familiar with. Death. Pain. Agony. Suffering. Something happened at the other end of Rat City, and it was fairly recent as well. Without hesitation, Spawn turned towards it's direction and leaped back into the air. And he ran, moving with demonic speed, leaping from roof-top to roof-top as he sped towards the sense. When he finally reached the location, he witnessed a ghastly scene.

Five men, all brutally murdered. Their limbs were bent at unnatural angles, their bodies were covered in claw and bite marks, some wounds festering with poison, and all were soaked in their own blood. From the looks of their fancy (but ruined) clothes, they were most likely mafia hitmen, or wise guys working for the Kingpin, Fisk. As Spawn looked in closer, he noticed something else. A few of the corpses had an odd substance spackled onto their clothes, something that vaguely resembled wet, shredded newspaper. Spawn picked up some of the substance, feeling that it was both very sticky and difficult to tear. It was then he realized what it was...

"Webbing," said Spawn in a low voice as he shook it off his hand. "Looks like Venom's back in town. After Spider-Man again, no doubt..."

With that, Spawn headed back to the church. Since the killing happened in his alleys, he'd most likely get blamed for it. But at this point, he didn't care anymore. All that mattered to him was his chance to redeem himself, and end his existence as a Hellspawn. When night would fall, he would begin his journey for salvation. As for Venom? Let him find Spider-Man. It wasn't Spawn's problem. And if those men were indeed working for the Kingpin, then Venom was definitely looking in the right place. If anyone knew where Spider-Man disappeared to, it would be Fisk...

Meanwhile, that said Fisk had been sitting in his office enjoying a dry martini and a Cuban cigar. He was celebrating a deal recently settled with some gun runners, and he had become twelve million dollars richer. Fisk himself was a living behemoth. He was six feet and ten inches tall, and weighed over 400 pounds. Even though he looked like a tub of lard, less than two percent of his body was fat. And with the exception of his caterpillar-like eyebrows, not a single hair was atop his shiny bald head. Although his name was Wilson Fisk, the fair and cooperative business man and proud supporter of the community, in actuality he was none other than the notorious Kingpin of Crime.

"_Mr. Fisk?"_ his secretary's voice said over the speaker phone. _"A Mister Brock is here to see you. He's insisting that it's important."_

"Is that so," said the Kingpin as he sipped his martini. "How important does he claim it to be?"

"He says that it's a matter of life and dea–"

Just then, her voice was cut off, and only static could be heard. This caught the Kingpin's attention.

"Barbara?" he said as he pressed the call button.

His response was his secretary's desk being hurled through his office doors, knocking them off their hinges and catching him by great surprise. He ducked out of the way just in time, and the desk crashed through his window behind him. He was 120 stories up, a very long drop. When he stood back up, he met eyes with his assailant. It was someone who the Kingpin had never expected, for it was a creature of monstrous proportions. His jet black body, his horrific white eyes, his glistening fangs, his sharp claws, and his white-spider design were all a dead giveaway; Venom.

"Fisk!" Venom yelled furiously. "You fat piece of scum!"

Before Fisk could react, Venom leaped towards the Kingpin with his arms forward, letting out a loathsome growl as he did so. Venom then performed a flip, which developed into a graceful spinning kick that collided with the Kingpin's chest. The impact sent the frightened Fisk flying out the window, feeling death breathing down his neck when Venom grabbed his ankle and dangled him out the broken window.

"Where's Spider-Man?" Venom yelled. "We've searched the city and he's no place to be found! Where is he?"

"I don't know!" Fisk yelled in sheer terror, his gut going into his mouth as he saw how far the pavement was from his position. "I don't know where he is!"

"You're a liar Fisk!" exclaimed a furious Venom. "You're the Kingpin! Nobody on the eastern seaboard so much as lights a cigarette without you knowing about it! Now tell us where he is right now, or you'll spend the rest of your days as street jelly!"

Venom then loosened his grip on Fisk's ankle, causing the Kingpin to scream in fear.

"We won't ask you again!" yelled Venom.

"Alright!" screamed Fisk. "Alright, I'll tell you what I know! One of my men spotted Spider-Man with the Fantastic Four the night that he disappeared! I don't know where he went after that! That's all I know, I swear on my dear mother's grave!"

"Thanks." said Venom right before throwing the human whale right back into his office. He did it with such force that Fisk crashed right through the wall he collided with. When that was done, Venom leaped out of the office building and headed straight for the Fantastic Four's headquarters by web-swinging, using such skill and grace that it put the world's greatest acrobat to shame.

"Soon, little Spider," he said to himself. "Very soon..."

**End of Chapter Nine**


	11. Chapter Ten

**Chapter Ten**

**Here at My Car**

It had been nearly two weeks since the Lizard attacked, and not much happened since then. Dr. Connors was sent back to New York, and Robin let Spider-Man pose as Ricochet so he could fight alongside the Titans. Since Venom didn't know about that persona, it was safe for him to go back outside. Naturally, the media took the fact that the Teen Titans had a new member and ate it alive. Even though Peter was an adult, he was still a teenager at heart. So with that personality trait, he fit in just fine. And since he wore a mask, that helped all-the-better. While in the tower, the Titans would just call him Pete or Peter to avoid confusion. But in spite of the fact that he was part of the team, Raven _still_ didn't trust him.

But still, Robin questioned letting Ricochet stay. Even though Ricochet insisted that the only reason that the Lizard located him was because of his great sense of smell. His nasal glands were the size of footballs, and he could detect someone's body odor from miles and miles away. But that reassuring thought didn't stop Robin from wondering. If the Lizard found him so easily, what was to stop Venom? But more importantly, who were the puppeteers pulling the Lizard's strings?

Robin wasn't the only one in deep thought. Raven still wondered what became of Cyborg's nightmares, and why they just suddenly stopped. Every time she tried to ask him about it, Cyborg would either slither away or change the subject. Needless to say, this was very annoying. Perhaps he knew that the tea she him was drugged, and that he was angry with her about it. So she decided that tonight, she would sneak into his room while he slept, and hopefully discover the cause. So at the moment, Raven just sat at the couch in the living room reading one of her many books. Then...

"Raven?" a sweet, innocent voice said from behind her.

Raven took her eyes away from her book, and sure enough Starfire was standing right behind her. A look of worry played across her face, which in turn made Raven worry as well.

"What?" said Raven.

"I apologize for interrupting you," said Starfire. "But I do require your assistance. I wish to confront friend Cyborg about his mares of the night, and I wish for you to be with me when I do so. I was hoping that maybe the both of us would entice him to explain what occurs in his dreams. If you do not wish to do so, then I understand completely."

Raven sighed. "It's okay Starfire," she said as she stood up and marked her place in her book. "I'll go with you."

"_Why not?"_ Raven thought. _"I've tried everything else to get Cyborg to talk. I could use all the help I could get at this point."_

"Glorious!" said Starfire. "Then let us locate Cyborg so that we may-"

"_**OH GOD!"**_

Raven and Starfire both jumped a little at the sudden outburst, and a pants-less Ricochet came running out of the hall scared out of his wits. Upon further examination, Raven and Starfire realized that his R2-D2 boxer-shorts were almost as ridiculous as his bunny slippers.

"Friend Peter!" said Starfire. "What has happened to you?"

"That worm-thing ate my pants!" he exclaimed as he pointed towards the hallway that he ran out of.

Sure enough, Starfire's pet Silkie emerged out of the hall with a piece of Ricochet's pants hanging out of it's mouth. Starfire wasn't the least bit pleased, and she quickly flew over to Silkie with a serious look on her face.

"Silkie!" she scolded. "That was a very naughty thing to do! What have I told you about ingesting our friends' articles of clothing?"

Silkie made a few gurgling noises that signified that she was sorry, and slowly wriggled backwards. But before she could get away, Starfire picked her up and flew over to the sink. Starfire then applied a few light pats on Silkie's back as she held her over the sink itself. This caused Silkie to regurgitate Ricochet's chewed up jeans, among other things; Beast Boy's sneakers, Cyborg's torque wrench, a bottle of Robin's cheap hair gel, and a small box of tea bags. Starfire then set Silkie back on the ground.

"Now then," she said. "I want you to return to your pen of playing and think about what you have done. I will come to check on you in half of an hour, and you had best be where I told you to go when I arrive."

Silkie made a few clicking noises as she nodded in agreement, and quickly wobbled back to Starfire's room. Starfire removed Ricochet's jeans from the sink, holding it by one of the belt straps with her thumb and index finger. She then made her way towards Ricochet and held the chewed up, partially digested pants in front of Ricochet's face. All the while, Raven looked on.

"I deeply apologize for my little bumgorf's behavior," she said. "I am afraid that she does not bode well with new faces."

"That's, uh," said Ricochet he took the pants in the same manner that Starfire held it. "That's...that's your pet?"

"No," corrected Starfire. "She is not my pet. Silkie is my bumgorf. The term '_bumgorf'_ is the Tamaranian word for _child_."

"And before you wish to ask," said Starfire with a humorous tone. "No. I did not give birth to her."

"Look," said an exasperated Raven. "I hate to interrupt, but Starfire and I need to find Cyborg. So if you'll excuse us..."

"Oh, Vic?" said Ricochet as he ringed the worm saliva out of his ruined jeans. "He's in the garage, but I wouldn't go in there if I were you. He's pretty pissed off right now."

"Why?" said Raven with a raised eye-brow.

"Beast Boy," said Ricochet as he put his home-made punker jeans on. "He thought it would be funny if he stuffed a flaming rag into a can of paint thinner. Needless to say, the can blew up and sent fire and thinner everywhere; ruined the T-Car's paint-job and melted it's tires. It took me _and_ Robin to prevent Vic from killing BB."

"Thanks," said Raven as she left the room and headed for the garage, Starfire following suit. They took the elevator straight down to the basement, where the garage was located. When they made it there, they could already hear both Cyborg's angry mumbling and the sound of a pressure washer. They each slowly walked in the sound's direction, and to no surprise they arrived at the garage door. Cautiously, Starfire pushed the door open as she and Raven peeked inside.

"I know you're there..." mumbled Cyborg, obviously frustrated with his task. "Come on in..."

Slightly stumped, both Raven and Starfire entered and shut the door behind them.

"With all due respect, friend Cyborg," said Starfire. "How is it that you knew we were standing outside of the door? I do not believe that we made a sound of any kind..."

Cyborg set down the pressure washer, turning it off and hauling it back to it's spot afterwards.

"I didn't," he said as he turned and faced them both. "Pete called me up and said that you two were heading my way."

"Oh..." said Starfire.

It was then that Raven decided to take action. She decided that if there was a time to find out why Cyborg's nightmares stopped, it would be now. She stepped up to Cyborg, and gave him her sternest of looks. Starfire knew what Raven was doing, and quickly followed suit. She also gave a demanding look. As cheerful as Starfire was, nobody liked her when she was angry. Cyborg was no dummy, so he immediately knew that something was up.

"What?" he said.

"Look, Cyborg," said Raven in her serious, monotone voice. "I don't know why your nightmares stopped happening, but that doesn't change the fact that they happened. Need I remind you that you were supposed to tell me about them? I still want to know what they're about."

"Indeed, Cyborg," said Starfire, using a tone that a mother would use while lecturing her child. "We do realize that you wish to keep such matters to yourself, but we only mean well. Raven and I only wish to help you; nothing more."

Cyborg was pinned. How could he possibly refuse his two friends? He did feel better knowing that both the women of Titan's Tower were concerned about him, but he still didn't want to tell them about his dreams. His memories, more like it. There were some things in the world that just couldn't be talked about. And besides, what was in it for him? If he was going to tell them some of his deepest, darkest secrets, what would he get in return?

As Cyborg looked at the paint-stripped, wheel-less T-Car, he got one hell of an idea...

"Alright," said Cyborg as he smiled, his anger and frustration seemingly disappeared. "I'll tell you what. You two help me fix the T-Car, and tonight I'll tell you both about my nightmares _and_ why they stopped."

"You'll tell us everything?" said Raven.

"Everything." Cyborg said back. "From the second I go to sleep to the minute I wake up."

Raven looked back at Starfire, who nodded in response. Starfire walked up and stood right next to Raven. They then both looked at Cyborg.

"Agreed." they both said in unison. This caused Cyborg to loose all his frustration.

"Alright then," he said as he walked towards the spot where the lifting jacks were kept, leaving the T-Car behind him. "I got all the old paint stripped off, so we need to put a new primer coat on it. But first, we need to replace the wheels. Star? Come here and give me a hand with these..."

Before Cyborg could finish his sentence, he heard something that sounded like eight thousand pounds of metal and muscle being hoisted into the air. He quickly turned around, and met eyes with a smiling Starfire...who was effortlessly holding the T-Car above her head by the drive-live. Cyborg then gave a sheepish grin as he rubbed the back of his head. He couldn't help himself. No matter how many times he'd seen her lift something bigger than a bus, he still couldn't remember that she was much stronger than she looked.

"Or," he said with a voice matching the look on his face. "You could just lift it over your head..."

Starfire beamed happily at Cyborg's statement, and continued to hold the T-Car perfectly still.

"Okay," said Cyborg. "Now we just need to replace the wheels..."

This time, Cyborg expected something to happen. Sure enough, Raven stepped forward. She observed the room, and noticed the spare wheels that Cyborg was talking about. Very expensive rims, and even more pricey tires on them. Nevertheless, she had her task to do. So she closed her eyes, and placed her arms over her chest in an 'X' formation. She then began to concentrate on what she wanted her powers to do...

"Azarath, Metrion, _Zinthos!_"

First, the wheels with the melted tires still attached to the T-Car were engulfed in her black energy. The bolts holding them in placed quickly came off, and without stripping the threads. The ruined wheels were then cast aside, and the new wheels and fresh tires were taken from their spot and bolted onto the T-Car. They bolted just right, so the wheels wouldn't be crooked when the T-Car drove. Raven's powers halted, and Starfire gently and gracefully set the car back down.

"Alright!" exclaimed Cyborg. "Thanks a lot, girls. You two just saved me about an hour's work."

"I am glad to be of service, friend Cyborg." said Starfire happily.

"...Glad I could help," said Raven bluntly.

"Okay then," said Cyborg as he took some plastic covers in hand. "Now it's time to paint it. First, I need to put plastic on the windows, chrome, and rims. After that I add a coat of primer, then the actual paint itself. Now I kinda like doing this part, so is it cool if you two just watch for a bit?"

Before Raven could answer, Starfire already blurted in.

"Of course!" said Starfire. "Now if neither of you mind, I shall go to the kitchen and retrieve beverages for after your task is done. I shall return soon!"

Before either of them could react, she flew out the door and headed up the stairway, going straight for the kitchen. Unbeknownst to Raven and Cyborg, Starfire had planned that from the very beginning. She really did care about Cyborg's dreams, but the important part was to get them alone together. When Starfire made it to the kitchen, Robin was there waiting for her.

"So?" Robin said as he opened his Pepsi. "Did it work?"

"Indeed it has," Starfire said with a smile, holding her hands together as she tilted her head to the side. "They are alone now, and I do believe that it is only a matter of time before they begin the process of pheromonal attraction."

"Good," said Robin with a smile. "Maybe this will help Cy out with his nightmares that you told me about. Did you get a chance to hear about them?"

"Unfortunately, no," said Starfire as her shoulders slumped. "I have tried multiple times, but he absolutely refuses to explain them to me, or anyone at all. Let us hope that friend Raven has a better chance than I had."

"Yeah..." said Robin.

Meanwhile, back in the garage...

Cyborg carefully sprayed the gray primer onto the bare T-Car, after having covered all of the parts that needed to be covered. Raven just sat at the bench, watching him put great effort into making absolute certainty that the coat was even. She couldn't help it. His movements were almost hypnotic. Just watching him move with such care and precision. It made her feel sleepy, and almost light-headed. Or maybe it was just the fumes from the paint getting to her head...

"Cool," said Cyborg, catching Raven's attention. "The primer coat's done. Now I just gotta let it dry, and I can apply the main coat."

"Good..." Raven said dully.

Cyborg set the sprayer down, and then made his way towards Raven. He sat a few feet away from her, and stretched out his arms. When he relaxed, he decided to have a chat with Raven while the paint on his car died.

"So Rae," he said. "If you don't mind me asking, why are you so interested in my dreams?"

Raven didn't say anything at first, nor did she look at Cyborg. She rested her chin in her hand, and after a slight pause she answered him...still not looking at him.

"Because I care about you, Cyborg," she said. "And I worry about you sometimes..."

"Worry about me?" Cyborg smirked. "You mean to tell me that big-bad-Raven worries about little-old-Cy? Someone pinch me!

Raven just rolled her eyes.

"Joking aside," said Cyborg. "I'm glad that you care about me. Nice to know that you got my back and all."

There was a slight silence between the two after Cyborg's statement.

"It's...more than that," said Raven, breaking the silence. "I..."

Raven then let out a long, drawn-out sigh as she finally looked at Cyborg. He noticed a look in her eyes that he had never seen before. Cyborg never thought in his entire life about comparing Raven to a sad puppy or kitten, but the look she gave him now brought that thought to mind. Now Cyborg felt a bit light-headed himself, and could feel butterflies in his mechanical gut. To an even greater surprise, Raven slowly scooted closer to Cyborg. This action caused Cyborg's mocha colored face to gain a slight flush of red under his human eye. It grew even darker when the side of Raven's hip touched his leg. Even though he couldn't feel it, he knew what was happening due to his reaction. And to top it all off, the mechanical components of his body almost went into overload when Raven closed her eyes and rested her head on his chest.

"I like you, Cyborg..." she said. "...a lot."

"...like me?" said a very flustered Cyborg. "You mean..._like_ me, like me..."

Raven only replied by a simple nod of her head, a very small (but loving) smile on her face. Cyborg also gave a slight smile, his blush fading away. He put his arm around her, and let time go by. The T-Car could wait. Raven liked being held in Cyborg's arm, but at the same time cursed it. She knew that this was as far as they could ever go, thanks entirely to her emotion-fueled powers. She never told anyone, but she had a deep secret. Even though she acted as if she were repulsed by love and intimacy, in actuality she longed for it. But she couldn't have it. And for that, she hated it.

So all she could do was savor this moment...here at the car.

Back upstairs...

Robin, Starfire, Ricochet, and Beast Boy all stood in front of the surveillance monitor watching the garage. Starfire's face had the look of ultimate bliss, and Robin had a smile filled with pride for Raven and Cyborg. Ricochet was telling Beast Boy to pay up, for Beast Boy had made a bet claiming that Raven and Cyborg would kiss. Since they didn't, Beast Boy was now five dollars in dept to Ricochet.

"C'mon, BB," said Ricochet in a teasing tone. "I told you they wouldn't kiss yet! Now show me the money."

"Hold on, dude," said a defeated Beast Boy as he reluctantly searched his pockets. "I know I got it here somewhere..."

"Well look," said Ricochet as he patted Beast Boy on the back. "You find the money, I'm gonna go get something to eat. Be right back."

"Alright," said Beast Boy as he emptied his pockets of various items.

Ricochet left the room and headed for the kitchen, leaving the three behind. Robin and Starfire shortly followed, knowing full-well that Ricochet couldn't cook for the life of him. And Beast Boy continued to search his pockets, ending in vain.

"Maybe I left it in my room..." he said as he left and headed for his room.

Six hours later...

It was nearly 10:30 pm, and it was a dark, moonless, starless night in Jump City. As far as traveling went, it was quite horrendous for anyone going by car. The only light was what came from the buildings and street-lights, which helped in some way. Travel by plane was even worse. The rainless clouds were so thick that they blocked all visualization, and all flights were cancelled due to the inability to take off. All they needed now was snow, and then travel would be near impossible. For the average man, travel was impossible.

But for a renegade Hellspawn, these conditions couldn't have been better. The darkness cloaked him perfectly, and granted him the ability to move faster than he normally could. While virtually all forms of life were blind in darkness, he could see night just as clear as day. While this city was much smaller than New York, it was just as compacted. It was a lot like San Francisco, except it was much cleaner and more maintained. He knew what he was looking for, above all things. He searched for the base of operations for the Teen Titans. Like all superhero bases, it should be easy to spot. They were always more extravagant than the other buildings. When he made it to the area of the city closest to the coast, he realized just how easy it was. As he looked out to the ocean, he let out a sigh of disappointment and annoyance. Not because of means to get there; that was the easy part. It was just what it looked like that bothered him.

"Five teenaged superheroes living in a tower shaped like a giant T," said Spawn in malcontent. "Why am I not surprised?"

**End of Chapter Ten**

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Yay, chapter ten is done! Hope you guys liked it. And about Silkie? Everyone I know says that Silkie is a girl, so I just went with it. And I bet the suspense is building up, eh? Spawn has arrived in Jump City, Venom's still at large, and the Titans have no idea what's in store for them! Stay tuned for the next chapter; _The Road to Redemption._


	12. Chapter Eleven

**Chapter Eleven**

**Road To Redemption**

Cyborg sat in his room waiting for Raven and Starfire. They helped him with the T-Car, so now he had to tell them about his nightmares and why they stopped. So while he waited for them, he searched the Internet for some sports memorabilia. He wasn't very successful there. The most interesting thing he found was a foot-ball signed by Steve Young, but he already had one of those. Everything else he found was the sports epitome of crap, and weren't worth the material they were made from. Letting out a sigh of boredom, he looked at the clock in the lower-right hand of his computer.

"Man," he said. "It's almost eleven. Where are those two?"

Almost as if it were on cue, a knock came to his door. He shut off his computer and headed for the door. It slid open when he pressed the button, and sure enough both Raven and Starfire were standing side by side. Both were each dressed in their day-time clothing, implying that neither of them were sleeping.

"We are here," said Starfire.

"Alright," said Cyborg. "Come on in and have a seat."

Raven and Starfire entered the room, the door closing behind them. Raven sat on Cyborg's old and decrepit couch while Starfire simply floated in the air in a sitting position. Raven crossed her arms, and Starfire put her hands on her knees. Cyborg then went back to his desk.

"Alright then," he said as he opened a drawer at his desk. "First off, this is why my nightmares stopped. Where is it...okay, here it is."

Cyborg removed a white medicine container with a Wayne Enterprises logo on it, roughly the size of a cologne bottle. He gently tossed it towards Raven, who caught it with both hands. She observed the container, and realized what they were.

"Sleeping pills..." she said with a curved lower lip. "No wonder your nightmares just suddenly stopped."

"What?" said Starfire with her head cocked slightly to the side. "I do not understand. How is it that pills that cause slumber would hold mares of the night at bay?"

"Read the warning label..." Raven said flatly as she tossed the bottle to Starfire. Starfire caught the container and proceeded to read.

"Warning," she said aloud. "Continuos use may cause side-effects such as nausea, head-aches, dry mouth, and..."

Starfire's arms went limp, and her face grew a look so flat that it rivaled one of Raven's stone-faced looks as it dawned on her.

"Suppression of dreams..." she finished.

"Exactly," said Cyborg.

Starfire opened the bottle to see what the tablets looked like. They were simple, white tablets that looked like breath mints. In fact, they looked exactly like the sugar-pills that Beast Boy had to take due to the severe lack of protein in his diet...

"That's why my nightmares stopped," said Cyborg. "I got sick of being so drag-ass tired all the time, so I bought those to help me sleep _and_ get rid of my bad dreams. Because the fact of the matter is, I don't want to dream anymore, and-"

It was then Cyborg noticed that Starfire was leaving.

"Starfire?" Cyborg said in confusion. "Where you heading?"

"Oh," said Starfire as she turned around to face Cyborg, an innocent smile on her face. "Do forgive me and my current lack of manners, but I am afraid that the forces of nature are calling out to me. I must visit the lavatory, and I shall return shortly. And Cyborg? You may continue the story without my presents here."

With that said, Starfire left. However, neither Raven nor Cyborg realized that she took the medicine container with her...

"So," said Raven. "What about what happens in your nightmares?"

"First off," said Cyborg, his voice going dark and low. "It's not a nightmare. It's a memory. A very bad memory at that. It's of my last day being human, and it makes or last battle with Slade look like a walk in the park. It's _that_ bad..."

There was a long, uncomfortable silence at what Cyborg said. Raven wasn't sure what was more of a discomfort; the silence, or the spring in the couch poking her in the butt. Finally, after a few minutes of dead quiet, Starfire returned.

"I apologize, friend Cyborg," she said as she held the medicine container, slightly embarrassed. "But I did not realize that I still held on to your pills of inducing slumber..."

"It's okay, Star," said Cyborg. "Just set it on the table there."

Starfire did as instructed, and sat next to Raven on the not-so-comfy couch.

"So," said Raven. "Could you tell us about your nightmares now?"

Cyborg knew that this part was coming. He was afraid of it, but he knew that he had to explain it sooner or later. He didn't like it, but it had to be done. He took a deep breath, and decided to start from the top.

"Okay," he said. "It all starts-"

Cyborg's words were cut off by the intruder alert alarm, almost as if fate had conspired to never let Cyborg explain himself. Raven rolled her eyes, knowing that at this rate she'd never find out about his dreams. While Cyborg was relieved for the moment, he knew sooner or later he'd have to explain it sooner or later.

"Oh, come on!" he said in frustration. "Don't bad guys have anything better to do than bother us in the middle of the freaking night?"

"Apparently not," Raven said dully.

"_Titans!"_ Robin's voice said over the intercom. _"Big trouble! Get to the living room, now!"_

Without hesitation, Cyborg, Raven, and Starfire each ran out of the door and raced to the living room. As they ran down the corridor, (Starfire flew,) they each wondered who it was that broke into the tower. When they made it to the living room, both Robin and Ricochet were waiting for them. Ricochet was pounding buttons on the computer observing the surveillance cameras while Robin watched. Beast Boy didn't make it there yet. Either that, or he was sleeping through the alarm. That thought was cast aside, when a half-dressed Beast Boy came fumbling into the room.

"What did I miss?" said Beast Boy, hoping on one foot while tying his shoe.

"What's going on?" said Cyborg.

"Something broke into the tower," said Robin as he looked at his teammates. "And judging from the giant hole that used to be the main entrance, I'd say that whatever's here isn't human..."

At first, there was a silence as each Titan looked at each other, mentally asking themselves who it could be. Was it Atlas? Could it be Fang? Was the Puppet Master back, or was Soto looking for a new pet?

Finally, Starfire broke the silence.

"Have you had any success in discovering the identity of the intruder?" she said.

"I'm working on it, I'm working it!" said Ricochet as he increased his typing speed. "The cameras are malfunctioning! Every time something gets close, they go to static. It's driving me _crazy!_"

Just then, the power went down and the lights shut off. The computer screen went blank as well.

"Perfect..." grumbled Ricochet as his shoulders went limp, standing up afterwards.

"Dude!" said Beast Boy as he looked around frantically. "Who shut the lights off?"

Raven had no idea what was going on herself. Her guess was as good as anyone else's. She decided to do a mental scan of the tower, when suddenly...

"Agghh!" Raven yelled in agony, falling to the ground like a rag-doll and grabbing her head.

"Raven!" all the Titans exclaimed, Cyborg rushing to her side.

"What's wrong?" said Cyborg as he held her head up with one hand and supported her back with the other. Raven's head felt like it was being crushed inside of a vice, suffering from severe empathetic feed-back.

"Something..." she said weakly, her eyes shut tight. "In the tower...angry...desperate..._evil_..."

"I do not like the sound of that..." said Starfire in a worried tone as she held her hands to her chest.

Just then, they heard something that sounded like heavy footsteps. What ever it was, it was coming from the east corridor. Robin, Starfire, Ricochet, and Beast Boy each turned in the corridor's direction, taking battle stances as they did so. They couldn't explain it, but the temperature of the room seemed to grow colder as the foot-steps got louder. Then there came a sound of a cape or cloak swaying about, and the sound of chains lightly being rattled. Then finally, after what seemed like hours, the culprit was revealed.

A man slowly entered the room. A big man, about Cyborg's height. He wore a red cloak with an extremely high collar, and the cloak itself moved as if it were alive. His eerie, green, glowing eyes illuminated the room, and it seemed as if it were his presents that caused the sudden temperature drop. The rest of him didn't look too friendly at all. His outfit was mostly black, his mask had a demonic white wing-like design on the face, a large white v-like insignia dominated the front of his body, chains hung from his side supported by a demon skull for a belt-buckle, and his crimson, silver-spiked gauntlets were the epitome of menacing. The Titans looked on, completely at a loss for words. Who was this guy?

"Who are you?" Robin said in a demanding tone as he drew his bo-staff. At first, the man said nothing, and his eyes curved as if he were disgusted by Robin's words. Clearly, he wasn't impressed.

"Spawn..." he said in his deep, dark, foreboding voice. "My name is Spawn."

"Why have you come to our home, creature?" Starfire said as her hands and eyes began to glow ominously. As innocent and naive as she was, she was not a pleasant person when she was angry. Spawn found a little amusement in this, and decided to play their game. Even though he hadn't come to harm anyone, he might as well have some fun for change.

"I've come for the girl," Spawn retorted. "The one you call...Raven."

Now the Titans heard enough. Starfire, Ricochet, and Beast Boy each awaited Robin's orders, ready for battle to protect their friend.

"Cyborg!" said Robin as he looked at his mechanical teammate. "Get Raven out of the tower and get her to safety! We'll hold this guy off as long as it takes. Go!"

Nobody needed to tell Cyborg twice. He scooped the agonizing Raven up in his arms and darted towards the garage, leaving his friends alone with Spawn.

"Titans!" Robin said the second Raven and Cyborg were out of the room. "GO!"

Ricochet and Robin led the charge, each performing a jump kick in unison. Ricochet decided to get fancy, and his jump-kick quickly became a spinning-kick. Suddenly, a chain shot from Spawn's right side and wrapped itself around Robin's leg. The caught Robin off guard, and before he could react he was hurled towards the kitchen so fast that he crashed right through the titanium wall. Spawn didn't waste another second. He leaped in the air and gracefully performed a round-house kick, colliding with Ricochet's head and sending him careening through the window. This put Ricochet in a tail-spin, for his Spider-Sense didn't see that coming. When Spawn looked forward, a green rhino was charging towards him. Of course, this was no worry. With the right timing, a powerful right-hand jab send the green machine flying backwards at break-neck speed, knocking him unconscious when he hit the wall.

Now, it was Starfire's turn. She took to the air, and two chains flew towards her in an attempt to grab her. She fended off these chains with her eye-beams, and then sent a flurry of Star-Bolts towards her foe. Spawn blocked most of the erratic bolts with his gauntlets, but a few came into contact with his torso.

"_Damn,"_ Spawn thought. _"Those things **hurt!**" _

Starfire then wasted no time in taking the opportunity to attack her foe. She flew towards Spawn at almost the speed of light, fixing to punch him right in his face. But to her great surprise, Spawn grabbed her fist when it was inches from his face. He then threw her fist in a twirling manner, causing Starfire's body to spin wildly. Her body spun and spun for almost a minute, and when it finally stopped she was so dizzy that she immediately fell to the floor. Her eyes felt as if they were replaced with spirals, and she felt an overwhelming urge to vomit.

"Amateurs," said Spawn before heading down the hall that Cyborg had carried Raven out of...

Meanwhile, Cyborg had been running as fast as his metal legs could carry him. Raven grunted and groaned in agony as she lay helpless in his arms, the pain in her head increasing at a colossal rate. It felt as if some sort of creature was trying to burst out of her brain. She didn't know what it was. He guess was as good as anyone else's. But one thing was for certain; if the pain didn't ease anytime soon, Raven's life would end...

"Hang in there Rae!" Cyborg said. "We're almost there! Just a little more..."

Too late. Spawn appeared right in front of them by phasing through the wall, causing Cyborg to come to a screeching halt. A chain wrapped itself around Cyborg's neck, tossing him behind Spawn and making him drop Raven. Raven hit the floor with a menacing thud, and she curled up into a fetal position due to the pain. Cyborg crashed right through a wall head first, causing his vision to malfunction for a minute.

"Raven!" Cyborg yelled. "Get outta here! The exit's just at the end of the hall! GO!"

Unusually obedient, Raven forced herself to crawl away. Her legs felt like they each weighed two-hundred pounds, and she couldn't concentrate in order to use her powers. So, she painfully crawled away, tears beginning to well up in her eyes.

When Cyborg's vision cleared, Spawn was standing right above him. Cyborg was quick to react, and leaped to his feet and performed a devastating right-hook. Spawn ducked just in time, and countered the attack with an-equally devastating upper-cut. Cyborg landed flat on his back, clear across the hallway. This time, he couldn't get up. As he looked forward, Spawn was slowly walking towards him. Cyborg staggered, forcing his mechanical components to make him stand up.

"Victor Stone," Spawn said coldly, causing Cyborg to become mentally stumped. "I haven't seen you since you were learning how to ride a bike. You've changed a lot since then, I can see. It seems that fate has been cruel to the both of us; something we have in common."

"Okay, freak-show," said Cyborg as he drew his sonic-cannon. "Who are you, and how the hell do you know my real name?"

Spawn used one of his chains to knock Cyborg's cannon away.

"I know a lot more than that..." Spawn continued, his face inches from Cyborg's. _"Vicky."_

Now Cyborg grew frozen solid. He knew a lot of people in his life, and most of them were dead. People called him all kinds of different nick-names; Vic, Sport, Killer, Slugger, Hot-Head, Big-Vic, Champ, even Cue-Ball. But out of all the different names, only one person in the world called him Vicky. But that was impossible. That guy was dead.

Wasn't he?

"...Simmons?"

Meanwhile, Raven had just about made it to the exit. The pain in her head was getting worse, and her energy was quickly draining.

"What's..." she said so weak that it was barely audible. "Happening...to me?"

Just then, she felt something cold and hard wrap around her ankle. She mustered all her strength to look behind her, and to her horror Spawn was slowly pulling her towards him.

"It's your father," said Spawn, answering her question. "He knows that I'm here, and why I've come. He's trying to off you before I can do my job. What an asshole..."

When Raven was close enough, the chain flipped her over on her back. Spawn leaned down, and clasped his hand around her neck. He slowly stood up, bringing Raven to his eye level. At this point, Raven could feel Death breathing down her neck. Tears were now flowing down her face, and blackness began to engulf her vision.

"Please..." Raven begged. "If you...have come to kill me...do it now. Get it...over with..."

Spawn was infuriated at Raven's remark. He quickly pulled Raven's face to where it was inches from his, and she could smell burnt and decayed fleshed though the cloth of his mask.

"You fool!" Spawn barked. "I haven't traveled four thousand miles on-foot just to kill you!"

Just then, his free hand seemed to catch on fire, burning an ominous green flame. With that hand, he grabbed Raven's face and let the flames engulf her. But the fire didn't burn. It seemed to be...healing. The agony in her head was subsiding, and her powers seemed as if they were being refined. Placed under control.

"I've come to _free_ you..."

In actuality, Spawn was searching her mind. He was looking for the source of Trigon's influence, and he was way too close for Trigon's comfort.

"Trigon..." Spawn growled. "Where are you? Show yourself, you son of a bitch!"

Just then, Spawn located a red-cloaked entity that stood out from the rest.

"There you are!"

The fire burned more fierce than the sun itself, and Raven felt as if some horrible thing had been purged of her body. Like a cancer being completely eradicated, or a tumor being surgically removed. Overall, it felt good. The pain in her head was gone, and her body felt totally relaxed. As the fire subsided, Raven drearily opened her eyes. She took one last look of her savior, and fell into a dreamless sleep. But not before weakly saying...

"Thank you..."

**End Of Chapter Eleven**

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sorry if this seems a little rushed, but I can't help it. My bed looks ver appealing right now. Anyway, stay tuned for the next chapter; _Titan Return._


	13. Chapter Twelve

**Chapter Twelve**

**Titan Return**

Starfire groggily pushed the door open as she exited the lavatory, clenching her stomach as she did so. Her face looked very flushed, and possessed a tint of green. Robin waited just outside for her, painfully applying an ice-pack to the left side of his forehead. Tonight's events had truly rocked the Titan's world. This creature who called himself Spawn had not come to fight at all. As it turns out, he was there to cleanse Raven of her father's influence, thus preventing the inevitable end of the world. Raven was now resting on the couch, lost in a dreamless sleep. In an even more bizarre twist of events, apparently Cyborg knew Spawn in his childhood. Uncle Al, he used to call him. He said that Al Simmons, the man Spawn used to be, was a friend to the Stone family. So Cyborg was friends with Spider-Man, and Spawn was his surrogate uncle. So who else knew Cyborg? Was Deadpool once his gym coach? Or do he, Wolverine, Lobo, and Hellboy all get together to watch the Super Bowl?

At any rate, Robin was more concerned about Starfire than anyone and anything else.

"Are you okay, Star?" he asked her with a worried tone, his voice slightly shaken. "You've been in there for almost forty-five minutes."

"I shall be all right," she said weakly, now clenching her stomach with both hands. "I do believe that I am finished vomiting now..."

Robin gave a slight smile, and Starfire did the same as she saw his face.

"All right," he said. "Let's go check on Raven then..."

With that said, they both slowly made their way toward the living room...their arms around their shoulders for support.

In the living room, things had just settled down. The power was back on, and Raven lay on the couch with Cyborg at her side. He watched over her, making sure that nothing was wrong. Beast Boy was busy attempting to realign his nose, using a spoon and his index finger. He cringed and groaned as he pressed the spoon on the side of his nose, causing a few cracking and popping sounds to be heard. As he did so, he made his way over to the shirtless, maskless Ricochet. Ricochet probably had it worse than anyone else in the tower. He sat at the table with a first aid kit, applying medical attention to his various cuts and bruises.

"Dude," winced Beast Boy as his nose finally went back into place. "You okay?"

Ricochet slowly turned to face Beast Boy after stitching up a big cut going down his arm, his whole body wracked with pain. In spite of his condition, he mustered the most cheerful smile he could.

"I'm fine," he joked. "I only got kicked in the head by a spiked boot, went crashing through a bulletproof window, fell five stories, and landed flat on my ass onto a pile of loose rocks. Don't worry though, I'll live."

With that, Ricochet returned to tending to his injuries. As he leaned his head closer to the cut on his leg, Beast Boy got a clear view of Spawn standing by the exit, his green, pupil less eyes leering at BB. Just the sight of him made Beast Boy turn pale, and he quickly turned away and headed elsewhere. He couldn't help it. There was just something about this Spawn guy that made him feel very uneasy...freaked him out, as a matter of fact. After all, his powers were like none BB had ever heard of. Like with Raven, for example. She lived out her whole life, cursed to go without ever feeling emotion of any kind. But then, out of the clear blue, a man with an attitude from Hell comes out of nowhere, beats the crap out the Titans with little to no effort, and lifts Raven's curse with the mere power of thought. It made BB wonder...

"_What if he could bring back the dead?"_

Just then Robin and Starfire entered the room. Robin led the slightly woozy Starfire over to the couch and gingerly sat her down. The small disturbance caused Raven to slowly stir awake. Her vision was fuzzy at first, but it cleared itself after a little bit. Raven slowly sat up, rubbing her tired eyes while she tried to recall what just happened. She remembered a few things; the pain in her head, the loss of power, and something to do with no electricity. Then she remembered being cradled in Cyborg's arms, running down the hallway at breakneck speed. But the last thing that she remembered was being held by her neck in a violent manner, afterwards being engulfed in green fire.

Then it hit her. The man in the red cloak...

"_I just want to know one thing..."_

The voice Raven heard belonged to Robin, and as she looked in its direction she noticed him standing right in front of Spawn. Robin's face had a stern look to it, and he stood his ground showing no fear toward the Hellspawn. Spawn, though through a mask, gave a look that basically said he wasn't impressed.

"...if you were only here to help Raven," he continued. "Then why did you attack us?"

"I didn't," Spawn said back, his voice calm, stern, and bone-chilling. "You and your friends attacked me first, on your command I might add. I was only defending myself."

"Even so," Robin sneered. "You could have just told us you were here to help and spared us the trouble."

Spawn scoffed at Robin's remark. The Titans could tell that he was getting irritated.

"Would you have believed me?" Spawn simply asked.

There was then a brief silence throughout the entire room, and Robin's face fell flat. Beast boy then broke the silence after giving it some serious thought, (something he rarely does.)

"He's got a point, dude," he said to Robin. "I mean, come on, look at him! How often does someone like him break into the tower looking for Raven? And look at that suit, man! It just _screams_ evil."

"Okay, BB," Robin said, giving Beast Boy an annoyed look. "I get it! We made a mistake..."

"_We?"_ Ricochet said as he finished patching up his side, standing up afterwards. "From what I can tell, you're the one who yelled _Titans go! _Before giving so much as a second thought."

Robin then slumped his shoulders and gritted his teeth. He tensed his body up, but gave Ricochet's words some thought. After a few moments, he let out a painful sigh of defeat. Everyone knew that Robin was capable of many things, almost everything. He could run fast, jump high enough to almost clear a one-story building, take on fifty Slade-Bots by himself, and even fight off the Joker himself. But one thing he wasn't capable of was admitting that he was wrong, a trait no doubt inherited from his mentor...

"Look," Spawn interjected. "I've done what I've come to do. The fate of the world no longer rest's on Raven's shoulders, and the prophecy will never come true. Raven is now free, both to feel her suppressed emotions and use her powers as she deems fit."

The Titans were simply speechless. Especially Raven, who wondered if what this guy said was true. The rest of the Titans were experiencing many mixed feelings; anger, relief, confusion, fright, joy, and all things in between.

"I'll be keeping an eye on you for a while," Spawn said. "In the meantime, I have a _very_ important demon to kill..."

With that, Spawn turned away and began to leave. He didn't care if anyone thanked him; all he cared about was his salvation. The Titans watched as he slowly walked away, wondering if they would see him again. Robin hoped he'd never come around, and Cyborg wasn't quite sure what to think of his surrogate uncle.

Ironically, Beast Boy was doing the most thinking. This Spawn guy was more powerful than anyone the Titans ever met, and now he was leaving! Beast Boy really wanted to ask him a question, but was simply too terrified to ask. But he had to act soon, or his chance would be gone for a long time; maybe even ever. Of course if he chose to use the wrong words, he might anger Spawn instead. Either way, time was running out as Spawn got closer and closer toward the exit...

Oh, what the hell?

"Wait!" Beast Boy exclaimed as he darted toward Spawn, grabbing his cloak in the process. This caught both Spawn and the Titans by surprise, and brought up more curiosity than ever.

"You freed Raven with only think about, right?" Beast Boy said before Spawn could react to Beast Boy's action. "Right?"

"What of it?" Spawn said coldly.

There was a brief pause throughout the room, and total silence haunted the entire Tower. Finally, Beast Boy spoke.

"...Can you bring back the dead?"

One hour later...

"This is the place," said Robin, pointing toward the cave that was Terra's tomb.

The Titans, with the exception of Raven and Cyborg who decided to stay at Titan's Tower, had led Spawn to that spot. Raven and Cyborg had stayed behind so that they could guard the Tower, should some villain decide to raid the Tower while the Titans were away. When Beast Boy asked Spawn his question, his answer was that he could only reanimate a corpse. Resurrection was one thing he couldn't do. But since Terra wasn't really a corpse, it still provided hope. Still, faces were grim as thoughts wondered what the night's end would bring.

"Very well," said Spawn. "I'll be back later. Wait here..."

"No way, dude!" said Beast Boy. "I'm going in with you!"

Spawn then gave Beast Boy a look that put one of Raven's death glares to sad shame. Green smoke bellowed from his eyes, and his cloak thrashed about like an angry bull. Apparently, he took Beast Boy's remark as an insult rather than a declaration. Starfire and Robin each hid behind Ricochet, who was too freaked out to even move. While Beast Boy was just as frightened as they were, he stood his ground. He would never admit it, but he'd need to change his underwear when he got back to the Tower.

"I don't take orders from kids!" Spawn barked. "Especially not from a little green runt like you!"

Beast Boy was practically knocked to the ground by Spawn's voice, and now his fear for the Hellspawn had shown. But his fear subsided as Spawn's cloak lowered and his eyes stopped their smoke belching.

"I'm not doing this because you asked me," said Spawn. "I'm doing this for myself. And like I said, it may not even work. If you want to come, that's fine. But do be warned that you won't like what you may see...and if you ever call me _dude_ again, you'll be wearing that look of yours across your ass for the rest of your life. Understood?"

Beast Boy only nodded in response, his pants now completely soaked in his own urine.

Without another word, Spawn turned around and headed for the cave. Beast Boy stood back up, and quickly followed the Hellspawn into the darkness. But before he entered the cave, he took one quick look back to his friends Robin, Starfire, and Ricochet. They each nodded yes, and gave looks that basically said _go._ Beast Boy then turned back toward Spawn, and slowly entered the cave. As he treaded deeper into the cave, the moonlight soon disappeared. Beast Boy relied on his hearing rather than his sight...which really didn't do a bit of good. He kept walking right into walls, and Spawn was getting more and more irritated as he kept waiting for the green hero.

To Spawn, the darkness of the cave was just as clear daylight. He continued to journey inwards, walking closer and closer toward Terra's statue. But something was strange. For a cave that was nestled inside an active volcano, it was very cold in there. While Beast Boy was as confused as ever as to why it was so cold, Spawn knew exactly why. He had felt something that he was all too familiar with. The drop in temperature was the feeling of ghosts. So that proved one thing. The girl's body had died off, but her spirit was still lingering in these caverns. Since this pointed out that her spirit hadn't passed into the afterlife, perhaps there was hope for her yet.

Soon enough, they made it to Terra's statue. It was just barely above freezing in here, which no doubt was where Terra's soul had remained. Beast Boy was shivering, but Spawn was not phased in the slightest way. Just then, Spawn heard something...

"So..." Beast Boy said through chattering teeth. "What now?"

"Listen," said Spawn. "Do you hear that?"

Beast Boy stopped in his tracks, and listened as closely as possible. At first, he heard nothing. Gritting his teeth due to the cold, he listened again. This time, he did hear something. It sounded like...crying. Someone was crying, but who? The voice sounded familiar to him, and it slowly became more and more clear. Finally, it hit him.

"Terra!" Beast Boy exclaimed. "It's Terra! She's-"

"Shut up..." Spawn said flatly. "Pick a spot and sit down. Since the girl's spirit still haunts these caves, I may yet have a chance to revive her. But it will take a while, so just sit down and be quiet."

What else could Beast Boy do? He backed up against a wall and sat down, now ignoring the cold Spawn then approached the lifeless statue, and placed his hand on its forehead. In order to bring this girl back, he'd have to enter the ethereal word and find her. It's not something he was looking forward too, for he was almost completely helpless while in a trance. But, he had to do what he had to do. He knew nothing about Terra, so he would take this opportunity to see why she ended up like this. He closed his eyes, entering a deep state of concentration. He took a deep breath, and let the darkness engulf him...

In the ethereal world...

Terra lay, curled into a fetal position while tears ran down her face. All her memories were nothing but pain and deception, and they tormented her already tortured mind. All she could think about was what she had done, and why she did it. She missed being alive; she missed everything about it. She missed breathing, sleeping, eating, dreaming...she even missed running for her life. She had never forgiven herself for betraying the Titans, even though she saw them visit her grave after she stopped the lava.

But most of all...she missed Beast Boy.

"_Terra..."_

Terra's eyes shot open from the sound of the bone-chilling voice she just heard. She slowly looked up, into the glowing green eyes of a cloaked figure. He didn't look friendly at all, and had some menacing vibes to him. Was he Death? Had the Grim Reaper finally come to take her soul to the underworld? It was nothing more than what she deserved, she felt. After what she did, even monsters wouldn't want to be around her.

"Who..." she choked weakly. "Who are you?"

"Spawn..." the figure answered.

Terra was more frightened now than she had ever been.

"What do you want?" she said.

There was then a painful silence. Spawn realized that this girl was beyond troubled, and reviving her would be no simple task. But then again, since when was being a Hellspawn easy. Spawn kneeled down, and gently lifted Terra up to her knees.

"This isn't about me, Terra," he said. "I believe the question is; what do _you_ want?"

Terra lowered her head, not thinking about why this thing was here talking to her. She was simply too depressed to think.

"I want this to end..." she said. "I don't care how. I just want to leave this horrible place and never come back..."

Terra felt fingers gently press under her chin, lifting her head up so she could make eye-contact with her strange visitor.

"Terra," said Spawn. "What if I told you that I could take you away from this place? What if I told you that you're being given a second chance?"

Terra's eyes went wide with shock. Did she just hear him right? Did he just say that he could grant her a second chance in life? A very slight hint of a smile began to form on her teary-eyed faced...but faded just as fast. Once again, she lowered her head in shame.

"I can't..." she said miserably. "I can't go back. I have no place to go. And besides, I only do more harm than good...and the worst part is..."

There was yet another silence. Spawn was beginning to lose his little patience that he had left.

"I think I'm evil..."

Terra then felt Spawn violently grab her neck, pulling her upwards as he stood back up. His cloak quickly began to engulf them both, and soon were both shrouded in darkness.

"Brace yourself, Terra," said Spawn. "I'm about to give you a very hard lesson on the difference between good and evil."

Soon, Terra found herself with Spawn in another place entirely. The sun was high above, and the ground below was miles and miles of desert; possibly somewhere in New Mexico or Arizona. As she looked around her, she realized that they were surrounded by the United States military! Hundred of armed troops hurried about, and military assault vehicles of all kind could be seen. Tanks, jeeps, Apache attack helicopters, Harrier fighter jets, and hundreds of mounted 50. Machine guns everywhere. They seemed to be pointing towards an area where mountains could be seen. But among everything else, one man stole the show. Superman himself was there, talking with the general. None of the troops seemed to be paying any mind to her or Spawn...

"What is this place?" Terra finally said in confusion. "Is this some kind of trick?"

"This is no illusion, Terra," said Spawn. "This is a glimpse into the past. These men can't see or hear us; we are as ghosts to them. We're in Arizona, and this is an event that took place three years ago. These men are gathered here to combat the likes of only one man..."

As Terra continued to look around, she wondered what exactly they were up against.

"You mean Superman and half of the U.S. military came to fight one guy?" She said, half-forgetting about her dilemma. "Who is he, Godzilla?"

"No," said Spawn. "It's the second-biggest green monster..."

Terra's question was soon to be answered.

"**_Incoming!"_** yelled one of the troops.

Terra then heard something that sounded like a yell from a giant, and she quickly turned in it's direction. As Terra looked over the horizon, she could not believe her eyes...

Something leaped over the mountain, heading straight toward the assembling troops. A tremor was caused when it impacted the ground and it began to sprint at the army. The man, the monster, was easier to identify as it came closer. He must have been over 16 feet tall, and looked as if his body were nothing but muscle. His biceps and fists alone were as big as Volkswagens, and his skin was a light green. His face was completely contorted with pure anger, and his only article of clothing was a torn pair of blue jeans reaching only to the top of his knees. The military immediately began firing upon him, but their attacks only seemed to anger him more. It was then that Terra recognized who this was. She read about him, but didn't actually believe he existed.

It was none other than the Incredible Hulk.

No sooner than reaching the troops, The Hulk kicked a tank just like a football player would kick a field-goal. The tank was sent careening over three hundred feet in the air, and went soaring away for miles. Wasting no time, he grabbed tow more tanks by their cannons and slammed them together, crushing them like aluminum cans and tossing the remains aside. Bullets bounced harmlessly off his skin, and the Hulk continued to reduce the platoon to scrap metal. The missiles and rounds from the tanks, jets, and helicopters did little to hinder him. In fact, they only seemed to fuel his rage and make him stronger. What then blew Terra's mind was when the Hulk lifted a tank over his head and hurled it towards a jet! It flew with unmatched speed, and with deadly accuracy collided with the harrier and caused it to explode. The Hulk grunted in satisfaction, and continued to attack the helpless troops. Finally, Superman had seen enough...

"There's a very thin line between good and evil," said Spawn. "Bruce Banner walks that path every minute of every day."

Terra took her attention away from all the destruction and looked back at Spawn.

"He used to be a hero," Spawn continued. "A member of the Avengers, at that. But as the years went by, Bruce slowly but surely lost control of the monster inside him. It used to only happen when he was angered, but these days it happens when a hat drops. He's killed more people than he'll ever hope to save, and he's responsible for trillions of dollars worth of property damage. The hero that was the Incredible Hulk died years ago; now, he's nothing more than a walking machine of destruction. He's always on the run, leaving a never ending trail of death and destruction in his wake. Bruce Banner is now nothing more than an empty shell; a shell that serves only to house the Hulk."

Once again, Spawn's cloak engulfed them both. The last thing Terra saw was the Hulk swinging a tank by the cannon with one hand, using it as a club to combat the Man of Steel. While the Hulk was stronger than Superman, Superman was too fast for the Green Goliath to hit him. The way they fought reminded Terra of a housewife attempting to swat a bothersome fly in her kitchen.

Once again, darkness was all Terra could see. When it subsided, she found herself in what looked like an old garage. Tool chests were everywhere, as well as car parts and weapons schematics. The are itself wasn't very big; maybe about 18 by 20 feet. In the center was a black muscle car, a 1967 Shelby Cobra with armored plating. It was night outside, and raining as well. At the north end of the dark garage was a shop table, where a man was standing and cleaning a weapon of some sort. The only light in the entire place was a small desk-lamp sitting at the table, which wasn't much. The man was about average in height. Five ten at the most...maybe six feet even. All Terra saw was the back of him, which didn't give her much detail. He was wearing a black muscle shirt, black leather pants, and combat boots. He had short, jet-black hair, and his body was very well toned. Next to the table was a rusty coat-rack, where a black leather trench-coat hung.

"Who's he?" Terra said, uneasy.

"Just watch..." said Spawn.

Finally the man finished cleaning his gun. He then slowly turned around, revealing the rest of his status. Terra's mouth went agape at the very sight of what she saw. The man's face had a look so intimidating that Batman himself would feel scared. On the front of his shirt was a white, over-stylized skull, and a frightful one to boot. On his belt hung two 1911 colts, modified with bored chambers, custom triggers, and added compensators. The gun he was cleaning before was an MP5 submachine gun, which he hung on his side. He then took the coat off it's rack, put it one, and headed out the side exit.

"That was..." Terra said in a voice barely audible.

"Frank Castle," Spawn finished. "The Punisher."

"About ten years ago," Spawn continued. "His wife and son were killed by the Mafia. Ever since then, he donned his father's weapons and has been hunting down the mob playing by their rules. He's killed thousands, and has a five billion dollar reward on his head. For good reason, I must say. Even though he has rid the world of some of the worst scum around, there's a flaw to his method. Out of his blind hate for those that killed his family, too many innocent people were caught in his crossfire. In the end, he's no better than the murderers he hunts."

"Where is he now?" Terra asked.

"No one knows," said Spawn. "There's been know trace of him for over six months, and he's never gone that long. Either the Justice League or the Avengers detained him, or the Mafia finally found him and cleaned his clock. Either way, he's probably dead."

Terra suddenly grew weak in the knees, falling to them and lowering her head once again.

"This is horrible..." she said.

Spawn almost felt sorry for the girl. He almost thought about not showing her the next glimpse into the past.

Almost.

"Then you'd best brace yourself again, Terra," Spawn said as darkness once again began to engulf them both. "Because the next _hero_ I'm about to show you is the worst of them all..."

Once again, darkness was all they could see. Terra wanted this to end so badly. Why was this guy showing her these things? Was he just tormenting her for his own amusement? All it was doing was adding even more guilt, and at the same time she did feel slightly relieved. She never thought of those two the way this Spawn guy described them, and they definitely sounded worse than what she did before she met the Teen Titans. At least the disasters she caused were by accident...

When the darkness subsided, Terra wished that it stayed. The place that they entered was not a place anyone would want to go. It was evening there, and they were at a native village somewhere deep within the jungles of Cambodia. The sky was orange as the sun set, and that added more of a fearsome blend to their surroundings. But that wasn't what troubled Terra. What troubled her was the flames that engulfed their surroundings, and people, mostly women and children, were running away in a panic. And for good reason; they were being gunned down by a ruthless soldier. Terra watched, horror-struck as she witnessed bullets pierce their bodies and see them fall lifelessly to the ground. The one causing all of the Carnage was emerging from the shadows. Terra forced herself to look, and witnessed exactly what Spawn was talking about.

It was an American soldier; tall, strapping, handsome, and as ruthless as they came. His brown eyes gave off a cold, emotionless look as he slaughtered the villagers in cold blood. He was a big black man, and had muscles that put the Punisher to shame. He wore an army-green bandana over his bald head, a tank top of the same color, woodland camouflage pants, combat boots, and he had little to no facial hair. He only smiled as he continued his endless gunfire, killing people off without so much as a forethought.

"This," said Spawn. "Is the worst one of them all. While the Hulk and the Punisher kill people mostly by accident, this man kills them with full intention. He's more of a monster than the Hulk could ever hope to be, and he's murdered more people than the Punisher can count. In the end, he got what was coming to him. One of his allies led him deep into the jungle, where he was burned alive..."

Finally, the area they were in became a blur. It slowly decimated, and eventually Terra found herself back into the cave she became all too familiar with. Spawn stood above her, waiting for her to say something.

"Who..." she said. She didn't need to finish her sentence. Spawn knew exactly what she was going to ask. He was afraid she would, but he had to do what he had to do. He gripped the forehead of his mask, and quickly tore it away.

Nothing could have prepared Terra for what she saw. Spawn's face was truly the definition of fear and horror. His eyes gave off the same demonic green glow as his mask, and his face was horribly burned. He had no hair at all, and his cheeks were gone. His teeth were the color of dirt, and his entire head was covered in open sores and fifth degree burns. His nose was missing, only two small holes in its place.

"It was me..." he said. "I used to be called Al Simmons, a government trained assassin. Of course, assassin is just a clean word for murderer. I traveled the world, slaughtering innocent people for a living, Terra. When I died, my soul went straight to Hell! There I burned for five years, and returned to Earth as what I am now. A Hellspawn! My whole life I thought that I was getting rid of the world's vermin...but in the end I just turned out to be one of them."

Spawn then leaned in closer to Terra, his seeming like it grew back on his charred face. He placed his hand on her shoulder, and looked deep into her blue eyes.

"If you truly were evil," he continued, his voice sounding somewhat soothing. "Your would have shared the same fate as me. Your soul would have been sent to the underworld, and you would be burning in Hell this instant rather than haunting these caves. In fact, you shouldn't even be here. You sacrificed your life to save a city filled with innocent people, something I could never do. By that means, you should be in Heaven..."

Terra looked back at Spawn, eyes filled with tears. She didn't say anything, but the look on her face said everything that Spawn needed to hear. She was asking that if she wasn't evil, then what was she?

"I'll tell you what you are," said Spawn. "You're lost. Mislead. Confused. And above all...lonely."

Spawn then lifted up his other hand, which was balled closed. He brought it to Terra's face, and opened it up to reveal what he had. It was Terra's butterfly hair-clip, the one thing that she always had during her life.

"All you need is the right guidance," he continued. "Someone to walk you down the right path. Someone to be at your side when you need them. Someone...like Beast Boy."

Finally, Spawn stood up, towering over the small girl.

"Here are your choices, Terra," he said. "I can bring you back to life where you can live and breathe again...or you can stay here and haunt these God-forsaken caves for the rest eternity. What will it be?"

Back in the world of the living...

Beast Boy sat, half frozen from the cave's temperature. He'd been waiting for almost 20 minutes, and didn't know if he could take much more. He wondered what was going on with Spawn as well. Spawn had been standing there the whole time, and hadn't moved so much as an inch. Beast Boy also thought about Terra, and what her reaction would be to Spawn's arrival.

Just then, Beast Boy was caught off guard. Spawn's hands began to glow, and his body painfully jerked backwards. To Beast Boy's surprise, Spawn threw a deadly punch toward Terra's statue. The impact of the punch shattered it into a thousand pieces, which made Beast Boy almost die of shock. Spawn then slammed his fists into the ground, causing the rock to tremble beneath them. Just then a something began to form beneath Spawn's hands, at first nothing more than an oval shaped green thing the size of a small person. The green light was very bright, and lit the dark caverns completely. Soon the shape that Spawn made began to take form, growing arms, legs, a head, and generally thinning out. Hair began to grow from the top of the head, and a female face could barely be made out.

The light then got so bright that Beast Boy couldn't look anymore. He put his hands over his eyes and fell to his knees. He waited it out for as long as he could.

Just then, he the rumbling stopped. He heard something that sounded like cloth being ripped, and he also heard an exhausted moan that sounded like it came form the mouth of a female. Beast Boy opened his eyes, but darkness was all that he could see. With the exception of Spawn's glowing green eyes, not a light could be seen.

"She's alive..." said Spawn. "She's unconscious, but she'll be alright. Take her..."

Beast Boy held his arms out, unable to see what Spawn wanted. Just then he felt a body sing into his grasp. It was a warm body, and filled with life. It was wrapped inside a piece of Spawn's cloak, pointing out that she must have been in the buff after being revived. That aside, nothing could describe the joy that Beast Boy was feeling right now. A look of ultimate bliss played across his face, not unlike what you would see in a five year old after receiving a gift he always wanted. And indeed, Beast Boy got exactly what he wanted. His love, the one who he had been seeing in his dreams ever since that day, was now resting in the comfort of his arms.

Terra was back.

"Oh man," Beast Boy said, completely ecstatic. "Thank you man, thank you! Oh, you have no idea how happy you just..."

But when Beast Boy looked forward, he saw nothing. No green eyes, no silhouette of Spawn's cloak, not even the remains of Terra's statue.

He was gone.

Beast Boy just took it in, gripped Terra so he wouldn't drop her, and headed back the way he came. He was more careful this time, making sure that he didn't step into a hole or walk into another wall. After all, the last thing he wanted to do was harm Terra. Not again. So he slowly, carefully made his way up the cave, wondering what was in store for him, Terra, and the rest of the Titans as well.

So joyous was Beast Boy, he completely forgot that there was a certain web-head being hunted by a monster staying in the Tower...

**End Of Chapter Twelve**

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'd like to take this moment to dedicate this chapter to Vandagirl, all Terra lovers, and all Beast Boy/Terra shippers. This chapter was for you, my friends. Terra has returned!

Now, to all Terra haters that might have been reading this...sorry to disappoint you. But if you don't like it, spare me the flames. And for the record? Terra isn't evil. She just took advice from the wrong people. And look at Spawn's description of himself, the Hulk, and the Punisher. They're supposed to be good guys, but as cool as they are and as much as I like them, they cause more harm than good. The same can be said for heroes such as Lobo, Deadpool, Electra, Nick Fury, and other people as well. Terra's a perfect little angel compared to what some comic book _heroes_ have done.

At any rate, this chapter is done. Stay tuned for the next chapter! Now this next chapter will be pure Rae/Cy fluff, so stay tuned and enjoy!

Peace.


	14. Chapter Thirteen

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **Hello everyone. Once again, I have some good news and bad news. The bad news is that since the holidays are right around the corner, this will probably be my last update for a little while. The good news is that I kept it in mind, and for compensation I've made this chapter longer than previous entries. Hope you enjoy it.

Peace out, y'all.Enjoy the new chapter.

**Chapter Thirteen**

**One Cyborg, Seven Ravens**

"What's taking them so long?" Cyborg said as he looked at the clock. "They've been gone for over an hour."

Cyborg was sitting on the couch flipping through channels. It was one thirty in the morning, so naturally nothing was on. He and Raven had stayed behind to watch the Tower while Robin, Starfire, Ricochet, Beast Boy, and Spawn went to Terra's resting place. Only time would tell if Beast Boy's question would be answered. Hopefully things would turn out for the best.

Raven, meanwhile, had been using her powers for the most mundane things. Moving forks, levitating a loaf of bread, and even turning on the sink. All the while, she kept chanting Azarath, Metrion, and Zinthos. She had been doing this for over twenty minutes, and it was starting to grind on Cyborg's nerves.

"Rae?" he said flatly without looking at her. "I never thought I'd say this, especially not to you, but what you're doing is getting _very_ annoying."

Raven didn't answer him. In fact, she didn't even hear him. She had been too preoccupied to hear anyone at the moment. So many questions raced through her mind. Who is Spawn? Is he good or is he evil? Could he really bring back Terra? Was he truly from Hell? What was his true intention? Did he really free Raven of Trigon's grip? If so, why did she still have her powers? Why wasn't she clad in her white cloak if she were cleansed of evil? Why did it seem as if she had full control after all the years of struggling? Why? Why?

Why?

Raven decided that she needed to see for herself. If she truly were free, and if Trigon truly no longer lingered in her mind, there was only one way for her to find out for sure...

Through her mirror.

Cyborg detected that Raven left the room. Of course, he didn't need his sensors for that. He could hear her footsteps leave the room, and her chanting had ceased. Not wasting a second or taking any time to think, Cyborg instinctively followed her. He didn't know where she was going, but his bets were that she was heading to her room. Cyborg entered the hallway that Raven had exited the living room, and sure enough he spotted her walking down the hall. He walked hastily after her, wanting to catch up as soon as possible. Soon enough he was right behind her, and he slowed his pace so he was going her speed.

"Where you going, Rae?" Cyborg said as he walked behind her.

"Go away Cyborg," Raven said, not looking at him. The tone in her voice was her usual, dull, boring, and emotionless vibration. She didn't mean any harm or offence, but she obviously wanted to do whatever she wanted to do alone. "I need to find out why I still have my power now that I'm supposedly free, and to do that I need my mirror..."

Normally, Raven wouldn't have told anyone about the mirror that led into her mind. But seeing as how Cyborg and Beast Boy already knew about it, there wasn't much point in hiding it from them.

"Need my help?" said Cyborg.

"No," said Raven, still not looking at him. "If something goes wrong, you could be trapped forever. I can't take that risk."

Raven continued walking, and soon enough she made it to the entrance of her room. As she turned to open her door, she noticed that Cyborg was still standing right behind her. Now, she was beginning to grow annoyed. Her eyes narrowed, and her mouth was set into a perpetual frown. She was about to tell him off, but her words didn't get a chance to escape her mouth.

"Look, Rae," said Cyborg. There was something unusual about the way he spoke to her. He stood tall, and there was a overwhelming sense of authority to him. "I don't care if you don't want my help. But who knows what Spawn took or what he did to your mind. You might be free, and it might be a trap. The only way to find out is, like you said, to enter your mind. I'm going with you, and I'm gonna help you, wether you want it or not. And if you really want to stop me, you'll have to use your powers to throw me through a wall or something."

Raven only rolled her eyes, letting out a sigh of defeat afterwards.

"Fine," she said flatly as her door slid open.

With that said and done, Raven and Cyborg entered her room. Raven wasted no time in finding her mirror, and quickly began rummaging through her top dresser drawer. While she searched, Cyborg took a quick glance around her room. He wondered if Raven ever redecorated. Because from what he could tell, her room remained the same from when last time he was there. There was something they both shared. Neither knew much about interior decorating, and just stuck with what they were into.

"Found it," said Raven.

Cyborg turned his attention back at Raven, and walked towards her afterwards. Raven was staring blankly into her mirror, and both her and Cyborg prepared for what was to happen. Cyborg knew. First, four red demonic eyes would flash. Next, they would disappear almost as soon as they would appear, followed afterwards by a red and black claw that would catch them in it's iron-grip and pull them both into a spiraling abyss of red and black. Soon enough, they would land onto the path of rock and stone, surrounded by total darkness.

What happened caught both Raven and Cyborg by complete surprise

As expected, demonic eyes appeared. But there were only two, and they were glowing an eerie green instead of a fiery red. When they disappeared, the claw did not show to grasp them. Instead, a tsunami of chains and living-red cloth engulfed them and pulled them inside the mirror. The worm-hole of red and black was gone, and was replaced with a column of white-hot flame. As Raven and Cyborg each careened downwards, both experienced a collage of different feelings. Confusion, fear, and of course that sinking feeling people would always get whenever they fell. Strangely enough, the fire didn't burn them, nor did it even hurt.

Cyborg landed on his back onto the rocky platform, but Raven caught herself upon exiting the roller coaster of flame. She levitated the rest of the way down, gracefully landing on her feet right next to Cyborg.

"Nice finesse there, Cyborg," she said, filled with sarcasm.

Cyborg normally would have just put the comment off and took it like a man, but not this time. He stood up without saying a word, and the angry look on his face clearly stated that he was insulted by Raven's comment.

"Look Rae," Cyborg retorted as he brushed himself off. His voice was quite rough. "I tell the same thing to Robin every time we train. _You_ try being fancy when your body weighs over nine hundred pounds worth of metal, and has as much flexibility as an eggplant!"

Raven was a bit taken aback at Cyborg's comeback. She was surprised at how much Cyborg was offended, something that was very rare in him. She decided to fix this problem fast. She had just embarked on a potentially dangerous mission. The last thing she needed was an angry teammate.

"Look," she said. "Sorry that I insulted you, but we have to focus. We need to go to where my anger dwells so we can figure out exactly what's going on. Besides, the entrance to my mind was much different than what I remember."

Cyborg couldn't help it. Raven was right, but he still didn't fully forgive her for what she said. Even so, he had a mission to do. He didn't go through that freak show of an entrance just to come out with nothing.

"Alright," he said, defeated. "Let's go then. The sooner we figure out what's wrong, the sooner we can leave this mad house."

As Cyborg turned around, a small smirk played across his face. Raven knew that him referring to her mind as a mad house was his way of getting her back, and she didn't like it one bit. Regardless, he was right. Like Cyborg, Raven didn't want to stay here any longer than necessary. So, they began walking down the floating path. Cyborg readied his sonic-cannon, should he come across some unruly birds along the way. Raven also kept he senses alert, in case Spawn had left a few nasty surprises for the two of them.

They had walked for nearly twenty minutes, and the portal towards Raven's 'Happy Land' was in sight. Oddly enough, the birds were nowhere in sight. Raven was suspicious about that, for the very reason those birds were there was to keep outsiders away. Why were they gone, and where did they go?

They entered the portal, and Cyborg lowered his cannon. He knew that this section had nothing to worry about, save for maybe the fact that it was so sweet it might make your teeth rot.

"Okay," said Cyborg. "How many more of there portals do we need to go through?"

"This is the first," said Raven. "There are a total of eight realms in my mind. My anger resides within the final one. Therefore, we have seven more to go."

"Great," said Cyborg as he rolled his eye. "Well, let's get moving. Not sure what we'll find-"

"_Cyborg!"_ a loud, joyful voice bellowed. Raven and Cyborg each shot their looks forward, and sure enough an open armed 'Happy Raven' was running towards the both of them. She was moving so fast that she practically looked like a pink blur, and her bright grin was big enough to equal one of Starfire's bubbly smiles. Joy then leaped into the air and came crashing down on the surprised Cyborg, wrapping her arms around his neck and her legs around his lower torso. Her momentum knocked the wide-eyed Cyborg to the ground flat on his back, her arms and legs still attached to him. Raven's eyes were also big with surprise. What possessed part of her personality to greet Cyborg like that?

"Damn!" exclaimed Cyborg, ready to pass out from shock. "What got into you?"

"What do you think?" Joy said as she sat up, still smiling and happy as ever as she straddled Cyborg's chest. "I missed you, Cybey-Wybey! You and BB need to come here more often, and next time bring Starfire too! I have these really cute clothes that she has just _got_ to try on! It's purple of course, her favorite color, and it's got green trim to match her eyes! It would be perfect for her to take Robin out on a date, and she'd look really sexy too..."

Raven couldn't believe what she was hearing. Cybey-Wybey? That brought up a lot of questions. Since when did she start giving nicknames like that? Come to think of it, when did she start coming up with nicknames at all? And why was she talking about playing dress-up with Starfire? But above all, why was her Joy emotion acting like this? Sure, Raven liked Cyborg, but not like that. Well, at least she didn't think so...

"Look, uh, Rae," Cyborg said nervously as he stood up, causing Joy to slide off him. Even though she landed on her butt, she still smiled. "I'd really like to stay and hang out, chat, the works, but Rae and I really need to go."

"Great!" Joy happily exclaimed as she stood back up. "Can I come?"

"Uh," was all Cyborg could say before Joy gave her reaction.

"Alright!" said Joy as she jumped for...well, joy. "Then let's go!"

Joy went behind Raven and Cyborg and gave them each a push on their backs to get them going, and sure enough they began walking with a bit of a hasty start. So they walked down the path in Raven's 'Happy Land.' Cyborg walked in between, with both Ravens walking along each side. Joy was to his left, singing Zippity-Doo-Da as they walked and occasionally doing a cart-wheel or a running back-flip. Cyborg fought with all his will-power not laugh hysterically, and Raven hid her face under her hood from embarrassment.

After about a ten minute walk, Joy finally calmed down. Sure, she was still smiling wide, but at least she wasn't flipping and singing anymore. No, her singing dropped to a light humming instead. Apart from her humming, the trip was pretty quiet.

"Hey Cy," said Joy, being calm but still happy. "Can I ask you something?"

"Uh...sure thing," said Cyborg, wondering exactly what Joy had in mind.

"Well," Joy said, quite the mischievous tone in her voice. "Do you realize that the whole time we've been walking, I touched your butt 25 times?"

Both Raven and Cyborg froze in shock from Joy's statement, looks of shock and bewilderment dominating their faces.

"Psyche!" exclaimed Joy, afterwards bursting out and rolling on the floor with laughter. "You two should have seen the looks on your faces!"

Raven finally couldn't take anymore. She put her hood back up and picked up the pace in her walking. Cyborg followed, and Joy quickly recovered and went after them again. Soon enough, they made it to the portal that led to Raven's maze, where Raven's Sorrow dwelled.

"Finally," Raven sighed. "If I have to stay here a second longer, I'll puke."

"One down," said Cyborg. "Seven to go."

Raven and Cyborg were just about to leave, but Joy wasn't done yet. Without warning, she jumped up on Cyborg (this time without knocking him over) and gave him a very wet kiss on the human side of his face. Before Raven or Cyborg could react, she jumped off with her arms spread out.

"Smell ya later Cy!" she said happily as she waved good-bye. "And remember, bring Starfire next time!"

With that said, Joy ran off into the distance pretending to be an airplane. Raven and Cyborg stood silent, simply at a loss for words. They just watched as Joy disappeared into the distance, her pink cloak flowing in the wind. When she was out of sight, Raven and Cyborg turned and briskly entered the portal leading to Sorrow's Maze. They passed through, and sure enough the entrance to the maze could be seen.

"Hey Rae," Cyborg said as he turned his head toward her. "You mind telling me what that was all about?"

Raven was about to answer, and had already come up with a legitimate excuse. She was going to say that when she gets worried about something, her emotions tend to act up a bit. She would have said it too, had it not been for another interruption...

Without warning, Raven's 'Sorrow' had appeared seemingly out of nowhere and wrapped her arms around Cyborg's lower torso. She buried her face into his mechanical chest, and apparently she had been crying for quite some time. It wasn't soft weeping like the kind you would picture in a romance novel nor see an old 50's teen rebellion movie. No, this was full-blown, painful wailing. This immediately drove Cyborg's attention away from Raven's explanations, much to her relief and simultaneous discouragement.

"Hey," Cyborg said in a relaxing voice as he placed his hands on Sorrow's shoulders. "What's wrong?"

Sorrow was barely able to choke out her words between her sobs. Tears were flowing down her face, and dripping on to Cyborg's mechanical frame.

"A man came here," said Sorrow, her face still buried in Cyborg's chest and voice weak and barely audible. "He walked into the maze. He seemed mad about something. I tried to help but he...he..."

"He what?" Cyborg asked.

Sorrow slowly lifted her head up, bringing her face into Raven and Cyborg's view. Cyborg was shocked at what he beheld, and Raven was beyond bewilderment. Sorrow's left eye was completely swollen shut, and half of the left side of her face looked as if it were one large bruise. Even though her left eye was shut from the injury, tears pored out of them both. Her cheeks were stained with tears, signifying that she must have been crying for hours.

"He hit me..." Sorrow barely managed to say before burying her face into Cyborg's frame once again.

Cyborg was once again at a loss for words. Raven was now growing very irritated, and she stormed off into the maze before anyone could react.

"Hey Rae, wait up!" Cyborg exclaimed as he scooped up the weeping-willow that was Sorrow.

Cyborg caught up with Raven half-way through the maze. Luckily Cyborg had scanned his path last time he was here, so there was no chance for him getting lost. Raven was walking pretty fast, no doubt she wanted to get out of this part of her mind as soon as possible. She moved so fast that within a matter of moments, they made it to the second portal, this one leading to the realm of Courage. But something was off. The stone guardians were there as before, but not like how they were. They had been completely destroyed, their stone remains scattered among the path. At that moment, Raven's thoughts and concerns had become reality. Spawn had left something there, but what?

Without a word, Raven entered the next portal. Cyborg followed, still cradling Sorrow in his arms. But when he came close, a stone pillar rose from the ground and blocked his path. Cyborg came to a screeching halt, nearly dropping Sorrow in the process.

"What the crap?" he said in surprise. "Where'd that come from?"

"It's because of me," Sorrow said, still weeping and not looking at Cyborg. "I can't leave this realm. I'm forced to stay here, wether I want to or not. If you want to go further, you have to leave me. It just isn't fair..."

Cyborg didn't have any time to think. He decided to leave Sorrow behind and catch up with Raven. He didn't like leaving this sad thing behind, but he had no choice in the matter. He gently set her on the ground and supported her lower back with his hand. She still wasn't looking at him.

"Now listen up," he said in a soothing voice. "I'm gonna leave you here, but it's not because I don't like you. It's because I do like you, and that I need to go on the figure out what's wrong with Raven. So I'll tell you what; you stay right here, and I'll come back as soon as this mess is over. And when I do, I'll bring something for the eye of yours."

Sorrow then looked up at Cyborg. "You promise?" she choked.

"I promise," Cyborg said as he ruffled her hair.

The pillar then lowered, and without wasting a second Cyborg dashed towards the portal as fast as his metal legs could carry him. If he knew Raven, she was probably half-way through the next realm. He'd have to book it if he were to catch up with her.

He entered to portal, and once again came to a screeching halt. He would have never guessed it, but he was on the side of a cliff! On a natural balcony of stone, overlooking a valley of lush and green jungle. From his height, it was about a one hundred foot drop. Even above him, the sun was blocked out by a canopy of vines and trees. A clear and raging river roared through it's center, and all manner of wild-life could be seen.

All, that is, except Raven.

"Man," Cyborg groaned as he put his mechanical hips. "Where is she now?"

"_Yo Cy! Think fast!"_

Cyborg went wide-eyed as he heard the voice from behind him. He quickly turned in the direction of the voice he heard, and sure enough the green-clad Courage was swinging toward him on a vine. She was headed straight for him. Cyborg only let his shoulders go limp as and his face go blank.

"Aw, hell..." was all he could say.

Courage leaped from her vine and tackled Cyborg in the same manner as Joy did earlier, wrapping her arms and legs around him. She clamped on to him with such force that they both ended up careening off the cliff they were standing on. Cyborg's body could handle the fall, no problem. It was just the drop that concerned him. They fell for what seemed like hours, and Courage wasn't the least bit phased by it. Soon enough they fell through the jungle below, Cyborg hitting the ground landing on his back.

"_Damn!"_ Cyborg's voice echoed throughout the entire realm. _"Again!"_

Meanwhile, Raven had been waiting at the portal the left the Realm of Courage and entered her Realm of Malcontent, or simply Laziness. There, the orange cloaked being dwelled. Raven stood with her arms crossed, a look of impatience across her face. Partially, she blamed herself. Out of her determination to find out what was wrong and escape her mind as soon as possible, she didn't realize that Cyborg wasn't behind her until she made it to the portal. So, she waited for him. It had been about twenty minutes now.

"Maybe I should go back and look for him," she said aloud.

But, she didn't need to. As if it were a sign from above, Cyborg's hand had reached over the edge of the cliff and gripped the rock. Then, his other hand came up, followed by Cyborg pulling himself up on the cliff. As he stood up, Raven took note of his conditions. His joints had leaves stuck in them, and his feet were covered in mud. But the oddest thing about him was his face. It had kiss marks all over it, marked with green lip-stick.

"Don't you say a word." Cyborg said as he wiped the lip-stick off, putting Raven's monotone and emotionless voice to sad shame.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Raven said back. Though she used her usual dull tone, there was a slight undertone of curiosity.

This time, Cyborg was the first to enter the portal with Raven following. When they went through, the entered a realm that was much smaller than the rest. The next portal was literally a few yards ahead, and this looked nothing like any of the other places. They were in a small house, which reeked of old sour garbage. The walls were colored orange. Cyborg didn't know if they were painted orange, or if they were that color due to the fumes coming from the rotted food, soda cans, half-empty pizza boxes, and dirty clothes that littered the floor.

"Man," Cyborg said as he held his nose. "What is this place?"

Cyborg's answer was a loud belch that came from a nearby couch. Laying on that couch was the orange wearing Malcontent, snoring up a storm. Her cloak and leotard were both messy and wrinkled, and she was using an old newspaper for a blanket. As she snored, and very large dribble of droll hung from the right corner of her mouth. She'd scratch herself now and again, often followed by another belch.

"My inner slob," Raven said, also holding her nose.

Raven hovered over the field of waste, heading straight for the next portal. Cyborg side-stepped all the trash, as he had no desire to spend much time here.

"Hold up, Rae," he said as he dodged the garbage mines. "Not all of us can float, you know!"

When they entered the next portal, they found themselves in some kind of library. Instead of books that focused on the occult like you would expect to see in Raven's mind, there were books that mostly focused on the scientific method, world history, many magazines and newspapers focusing on currant affairs, and an entire section dedicated to Tamaranian culture and history. Large portraits of famous scientists and philosophers hung on the walls above the bookshelves, and study tables could be seen every few yards. This realm was the residence of Intelligence, the yellow cloaked and four-eyed bookworm. She sat at a desk, with piles and piles of books surrounding her. Some were even on the floor, the way they lay signified that she had simply tossed them over her shoulder when she was finished. Her back was turned to them, and she didn't seem to notice Raven and Cyborg there with her.

"Let's go," Raven said as she headed for the next portal. Strangely, the portal had a sign above it that said _'Horror.'_ Well, maybe that wasn't so strange. After all, it _was_ Raven here. Cyborg and Raven each entered, leaving the library behind.

Meanwhile, Intelligence had sighed and tossed another book over her shoulder. She rested her head in her hand, all the while in deep thought about what she should do. She then took a moment to adjust her glasses.

"I just cannot fathom it," she said to herself. Oddly enough, she spoke with a British accent, either from England or Scotland. "I have read over half of the books in my possession from cover to cover, and I have yet to find a logical explanation for my feelings toward my mechanical and masculine companion, Cyborg. At the rate I'm going, I may have a less strenuous time and put even less effort into finding a cure for cancer."

She sighed again as she pushed herself out of her chair. She got up and placed her hands behind her back, walking in circles as she thought some more. She then stopped for a moment, and looked at her portrait of Isaac H. Newton looming over her.

"What would you do in a time like this?" she asked the portrait.

Meanwhile, Raven and Cyborg had found themselves in a dark, dank, heavily wooded forest. It was night time there, and the crescent moon above gave off an eerie light. Crows cawed, owls hooted, wolves howled, and the wind made a horrible moaning sound as it blew through the trees. Foot steps that were not their own were heard in the bushes, and a few sharp clicking noises emanated from the trees. As Cyborg looked around, he realized that _this_ was more like Raven. But, even she seemed distraught in this place. This was the realm where Fear lived, the one that wore the brown cloak.

"So..." Cyborg said, slightly uneasy. "We at Anger yet?"

"No," Raven said back. "In retrospect, this place is probably even worse. This forest is a dangerous place. The creatures here take the forms of the thing that you fear the most, having all of it's abilities and memories. Be careful here, Cyborg."

"You don't gotta tell me twice," Cyborg said as he readied his sonic canon. "Which way to the portal?"

"There's two portals here," Raven said. "One leads to Anger's pit. The other? You don't wanna know. The one we want is half a mile down this path."

"Alright then," said Cyborg. "In that case, let's walk really fast."

But before either of them could take a step, a blood curdling scream pierced their ear-drums. Cyborg pointed his canon in the scream's direction, his sensors detecting running steps. With a matter of moments a huffing and panting Fear ran out of the bushes, her brown cloak flowing through the wind. Her face was completely horror struck, and she wasted no time in hiding behind Cyborg. At this point, Cyborg was used to seeing so many Ravens.

"You gotta help me!" Fear pleaded, holding on to Cyborg's arm. "That thing is after me! It's hunting me!"

"What's hunting you?" Raven asked, an eye-brow raised.

Suddenly, another sharp clicking sound was heard. Then they heard heavy foot-steps, coming closer and closer. Cyborg pointed his canon right in it's direction. Soon enough, a creature emerged from the darkness of the woods. It was about as tall as Cyborg, except it wasn't nearly as hulking. It's skin looked like black and yellow scales, much like a Gila monster. On it's arms were two gauntlets that looked of alien design, the right gauntlet brandishing dual serrated blades each exactly ten inches long. It's hair looked more like limp quills made of flesh, and it's face was covered with a brown mask. It seemed to be wearing fish net over it's entire skin, and though it had shin guards, it wore no shoes of any kind. On it's right shoulder mounted a plasma gun of some kind, with a triple laser-sighting pointed directly at Cyborg's chest, and a breast plate that covered the left side of his upper-torso. And lastly, it wore a belt made from the hide of some sort of woodland creature, with skulls from small animals both alien and earthly hanging from it.

Most people would have been scared witless. However, Cyborg was the exact opposite. This thing that Fear was running from was none other than the monster from the 1982 horror/sci-fi flick; Predator.

Cyborg's canon reverted back to his hand, and Cy just stood and stared down the monster. Raven and fear were both at a loss to what was happening, and could do nothing except look on. Suddenly, the blades on the creature's gauntlet retracted, and the laser-sighting shut off. It then turned to the left and walked away as if he didn't even see anything. Raven and Fear were both frozen with surprise. How exactly did that just happen?

"Cyborg?" said Raven. "How exactly did you just scare that thing off?"

"I didn't," said Cyborg as he looked at Raven. "Come on now Rae, haven't you ever seen the movie? Those things won't kill you unless you're armed with some kind of weapon. Reason he didn't kill me was probably because he saw me as just a piece of equipment, not an actual threat. And let me tell you this. If movie monsters is all this place has to throw at us, then this is gonna be a piece of cake. Now let's go!"

With that said, Cyborg heaved the frightened Fear over his shoulder and carried her like a sack of potatoes. Raven was a bit relieved at this. Maybe all that movie information he stored in his memory wasn't so useless after all.

They walked down the path, staying silent most of the time. The forest passed them by as they went, Cyborg keeping his sonic canon ready just in case. After a while, Cyborg broke the silence.

"Say Rae?" he said. "Why are you afraid of those Predator things, anyway?"

"What do you mean?" said Raven.

"You said that the things in this forest take the form of the thing you fear the most. So, why are you afraid of the Predator?"

"No particular reason," she said flatly. "It's just that the idea of a higher and more advanced life form hunting humans like cattle. It...disturbs me."

Cyborg was about to reply, but his words were cut off by maniacal laughter that came out of the woods behind them. Birds flew away from the sound, and small animals ran away in fear. The laughing continued, and it sounded sickeningly familiar to Cyborg. It was very loud, and high pitched. It came from a man, but it was warped and slightly scratchy. And above all, it was so insane that it made one of the Joker's laughs sound like an innocent giggle from a toddler.

Almost as soon as the laughing started, it stopped. But after all that, Cyborg had recognized the sound of the voice the laugh came from. He was scared stiff, and his mocha colored face went pale as he dropped Fear to the ground. Raven and Fear looked in the same direction as Cyborg looked, the entire realm falling completely silent. Just then, they heard footsteps different from the ones they heard earlier. They sounded as if it were a human walking an all fours. Not crawling on their hands and knees, but actually walking on hands and feet like a gorilla or an orangutang. The sound of claws scraping the ground could be heard, and a sickly breathing echoed in the air. Soon, a silhouette of something could be seen. White large eyes reflected in the moonlight, and some faint sights of red were seen.

When the creature came into full view, Cyborg was ready to die of shock. If he were wearing pants, he'd surely would have soiled them. The creature was truly hideous. It's body, though small and thin, was completely made of muscle. It's red and black skin moved and crawled as if were alive, and thin but long tendrils on his back and arms flailed about. It's fingers seemed as if they were simply long claws, and it's black fangs that hung from it's mouth were two inches long and razor sharp. Raven had no idea what this creature was, but somehow it reminded her of Venom from the tape that Spider-Man showed everyone. Cyborg, however, knew exactly who the monster was.

The forest had taken the form of the one thing Cyborg feared above everything else. The symbiote off-spring of Venom, the most ruthless killer of all time, and the one responsible for making Cyborg what he was.

Carnage.

"Hello, Victor," said Carnage in his screechy voice, taking a moment to laugh maniacally once again. "Did you miss me?"

Cyborg didn't say another word. Without warning, he ran into the woods as fast as he possibly could. Carnage darted right after him. Fear ran in the opposite direction, screaming her head off the whole time. Raven, acting on instinct rather than logic, ran to help Cyborg.

* * *

Cyborg didn't know how long or how far he ran. All that he knew was that Carnage was hot on his heals. Cyborg didn't even know why he was running away. His after the incident, he designed his sonic canon specifically for combating symbiotic beings such as Carnage. A concentrated blast would turn Carnage into melted butter if he timed his shot just right. He cursed himself for running away. He cursed himself for leaving Raven behind. But most of all, he cursed himself for not being able to face the one thing he was truly afraid of. Why couldn't he do it? Why couldn't he just fess up and be a man?

It was then he saw a sight for sore eyes. The portal was directly ahead of him. Who knows? Maybe this lead into Raven's Anger, and that Raven herself was right behind him? But then again, what if this portal was the one that lead to the place that Raven said he didn't even want to know? And knowing Raven, it must have been pretty bad.

Either way, Cyborg didn't care. Anyplace was better than hanging around with a psycho like Carnage. Cyborg was now booking it, and dove into the portal as soon as it was in reach. He flew right through it, and landed flat on his face onto...carpet?

Cyborg regained his composure, brushing himself off as he observed his surroundings. The place he was in was unlike any of the other realms in Raven's mind. It seemed like an extravagant art gallery, with large paintings hanging on the walls. The carpet he stood on was purple, and the walls, floor, and ceiling were all made of marble. Perfectly carved stone pillars supported the roof overhead, and fancy tapestries hung above and along the entrance ahead. Cyborg had no idea where he was, but it couldn't be Anger's realm. Letting out a sigh, he continued on.

As Cyborg walked, he took the time to observe the paintings on the walls. What drew his attention the most was the fact that all of the painting involved the Teen Titans in some way.

One painting that caught his attention was one of Starfire hugging Raven. But instead of Raven frowning and shrugging, she had an ear-to-ear smile across her face. Even more of a surprise was that Raven was hugging her back. The picture had _'The Big Sister I Always Wanted,'_ written into the frame on a gold plaque.

As Cyborg walked further, he noticed another painting. This one was a portrait of Beast Boy, shoving a gummy bear up his nose. He seemed to have a look of content on his face. The title for this one read _'The Annoying Little Brother.'_

Another painting caught his attention. This one, to his surprise, featured his friend Spider-Man. Thing was, there were two Spider-Men there. They were facing back to back. The one on the right looked just like his friend, wearing the exact same costume he'd wear while being New York's most infamous vigilante. The only difference was a bit abstract. A pair of angelic wings grew from his shoulder blades, it's white feathers shining in the light.

The Spider-Man on the left looked almost nothing like the one on the right. The red on it's costume was a much darker tint, and the blue was replaced entirely with black. The only thing that remained the same were the white plastic eye-pieces. Sprouting from it's shoulder blades were black, demonic wings.

The title of this painting read, _'Friend or Foe?'_

There were many more paintings, many of which involved Raven's friends in some way. There were more pictures of Starfire than anyone else, but there were a substantial amount of Robin paintings as well. There were some of Beast Boy, and to great surprise there were even a few paintings of Terra. The one that stood out the most was a painting of Robin and STarfire sitting on hill watching the sunset. The title read, _'Eternal Lovers.'_ But for some strange reason, there were absolutely no pictures of Cyborg anywhere. This struck him as odd. Maybe Raven didn't like him so much as he thought?

That notion was proven horribly wrong.

When Cyborg finally entered the next room, he thought he walked into a history book that focused on the Greek Empire of old. He seemed to be in some sort of ancient Greek palace, and he appeared to be in the queen's chamber. The room itself was enormous, and had an outside balcony with a grand view of the blue ocean. The sky was cloudless, and the sun was shining down. On the balcony was a table, big enough to seat two people. Though the table was small, it was very fancy. Like everything else, it was made of marble. It's contents were a great assortment of fruit, bread, cheese, and meat. It had the run of the mill fruit such as apples, bananas, oranges, lemons, grapes, strawberries, blackberries, kiwis, and pineapples. There were also very exotic fruits such as mangos, papayas, dates, mandarin oranges, durians, and bread fruits. The sweet smell of roasted beef, smoked pork, fried chicken, and baked fish filled the air. At the end of the room was a bed that must have been big enough for over thirty people. The rest of the room was filled with exotic furniture and art.

But that wasn't what Cyborg focused on.

What stood out the most in the room was what was above the bed. A painting that must have been twice the size of the TV in Titans Tower. It was a nude painting, but it was tasteful. On the painting were both Raven and a human Cyborg. His mechanical components were gone, his human body was back and more toned than ever, and he was laying down in the paining with his arm wrapped around Raven, who was laying on top of him. With the exception of Raven's bare rear end, no private parts were shown; only hinted on. The big time no-no parts were cleverly covered by a piece of the blanket or another body part. They seemed to be laying on the same bed that was seen in the room, and the look on their faces portrayed that they were in a state of ultimate bliss. The title of this painting read, _'Pain is Love, and Love is Forever.'_

"_Do you like it?"_ a female voice with a French accent said behind Cyborg. _"It is my personal favorite, and my one true masterpiece, no?"_

Cyborg was a bit distraught at what he heard. It was Raven's voice alright, but what was with the accent? He turned around, and beheld quite a site. Raven stood before him, but not like any of the Ravens from earlier. This one wasn't wearing a cloak or leotard, but instead a long dress made from purple silk. Saying that she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen would have been the understatement of the millennium. She had a wonderful smile, and her amethyst eyes sparkled in the sun light.

"I've been waiting for you for quite some time now," she said. "I was hoping that maybe you would like to dine with me. Well, shall we?"

It was then that Cyborg realized exactly where he was. This realm was the home of Raven's most feared and hated emotion.

Love.

* * *

Raven stopped running and rested her hands on her knees. She must of ran for at least twenty miles all around, and she was completely out of breath. She didn't know where Cyborg was, and saw no sign of the creature that was chasing him. It was like they just disappeared.

Raven caught her breath, and regained her energy. She could sense that Cyborg was still alive, but she couldn't figure out where he was. All she could tell was that he was out of this realm. At any rate, her mission was almost over. Once she entered Anger's realm, she and Cyborg could return.

Instead of wandering aimlessly to find the path again, Raven levitated above the trees in order to see the portal. She mentally slapped herself as she did so. Why didn't she do this before and save herself some time? When she rose above the trees, the portal was in plain sight. Wasting no time, she immediately darted toward it as fast as she could. Within a few moments she entered the portal and landed on the ground.

This realm was very different from what it looked like before. In the past, Raven's realm of anger was a place as close to Hell as you could possibly get. Here, however, was the exact opposite. Raven found herself inside of a church, it's only source or light being the many candles at the alter. It seemed like an ordinary church, complete with benches, organ, podium, and crucifix, but there was something about it that felt quite foreboding.

It was then that Raven noticed something laying limply in front of the podium. It seemed to be an old cloak, possibly belonging to a monk or bishop. Raven moved in for a closer look, and found quite a surprise.

The cloak belonged to Anger. It looked just like the cloak that Raven wore, save for the fact that it was red. Raven picked it up and examined it thoroughly. Odd. There didn't seem to be anything wrong with it. In fact, it was still warm.

That only left one question. Where was Anger?

"_My wife and I were married in this church,"_ a familiar voice said. _"Those were much better times than now. I find it ironic that this holy place you see before you is now the grave of a powerful demon."_

Raven turned around in a flash, meeting eyes with tho one from earlier. The one who supposedly saved her soul. His red cloak took up half the floor space there, and his eyes glowed in the darkness. How was it that he was here? Raven wasn't sure what to make of this, and just in case something was up she took a battle stance.

"Spawn?" Raven asked.

"No," the man said. "I'm not the one who saved you from Trigon's grasp. Though the Hellspawn's powers and memories flow through me, I'm nothing more than a spectral copy that he created. I now reside within your mind, here in the place where your Anger once stuck to you like an intestinal parasite."

"Why are you here?" Raven said. "Why did Spawn create you?"

"I'm here only to complete the puzzle." Spawn's copy retorted.

Raven halted her fighting stance. "What do you mean?"

"Think about it," said the copy. "Your mind is just like a puzzle. Or rather, a delicate soil. When Spawn cleansed you of Trigon's influence, he took a piece of you with him. Therefore, he left a piece of himself behind in order to fill the gap. It's just like a plant that relies on the soil it thrives on. If the plant is to survive, nothing from the soil can be removed without putting something back."

Raven thought about that for a moment. In some way, that made sense. So, what now?

"Now," said the copy, seeming as if he'd just read Raven's mind. "Now you're free to live as you've always desired. No longer will you need to suppress your emotions, and no longer will you need to hide your feelings toward your friends. And most of all, fear will never block your vision again."

"I don't do fear," Raven said flatly. Spawn's copy clearly wasn't impressed.

"Your pride will one day be the death of you," he said. "Hence the reason pride is number one on the list of deadly sins. Bury your pride, Raven. It was pride that lost you the battle with Terra. It was pride that nearly cost the lives of you and your friends after your first battle with Control Freak. Pride is the quickest path to Hell."

Raven frowned, Giving Spawn's double a scornful look. "What do you know about Hell?" she scoffed.

The copy removed it's mask, revealing his charred flesh. Raven was more than taken aback at this, and everyone knew that it had to be pretty bad if Raven was afraid of it.

"You may be the granddaughter of the devil, Raven," said the copy. "But I know more about Hell than you and anyone else you'll ever meet."

* * *

One Hour Later...

Raven walked down the art gallery, leading toward Love's domain. Spawn's double had told Raven that Cyborg was here, and she wanted to make sure of it. After all these years, she could finally live like everyone else. Her personality probably wouldn't change much, but that didn't make the fact that she would no longer live in suppression and denial anymore. She was now free. And what better way to start her freedom by confessing her love for a certain half-mechanical Titan? She had to admit, she did feel strange. It would take her a while to get used to living with her emotions after so many years of being a complete ice queen. But hey, nobody ever said change was easy.

Soon enough, she entered the chamber. The table on the balcony, once filled with delicious food, was no cleaned off. With the exception of a few peelings, some bones, and a half-empty bottle of wine, there was nothing there. When Raven looked at the bed, she saw something that would have made her jealous had it been a different woman. On the bed, Cyborg and Raven's love incarnation were being _very_ friendly with each other. If Love hadn't been still wearing her dress, it would seem as if they were recreating the scene depicted in the painting above.

Raven placed her hands on her chest, focusing her powers to bring her and Cyborg back to the real world. A white aura surrounded everything, and eventually everything faded away.

Soon, they were back in Raven's room. However, Cyborg was on Raven's bed. Raven was laying on top of him, exactly the same way Love had been earlier. Their lips were locked in passion, and as far as Cyborg was concerned he had been in the same place. In fact, he didn't even notice any kind of change. He just continued his passionate kiss with Raven, who was also enjoying herself to great extent.

After a few minutes, Raven broke the kiss. If it hadn't been for the natural high that people get when caught in the fires of passion, Cyborg would have noticed that he was back in Raven's room with the real Raven straddling him, smiling down upon him with rose colored cheeks. She then leaned into him and embraced him, putting her mouth very close to Cyborg's ear.

"I love you..." she whispered in his ear.

Cyborg embraced Raven as well, pulling her even closer to him.

"I love you too, Rae." he said.

* * *

Ricochet briskly shut the door to Raven's room after witnessing what was happing. Robin told him to find Raven and Cyborg and tell them that Terra was alive and well, but from the looks of things that would have to wait until tomorrow. As he walked down the hall back toward the living room where the other Titans were, he knew he'd have to stop by his room real quick to pick up some money. Starfire had made a bet with him saying that Raven and Cyborg would be _making with the out _by the time they got back, and Ricochet betted against her saying that it was too soon for that. Boy, was he ever wrong.

"Well," said Ricochet to himself. "Looks like now I owe Starfire two hundred bucks. I better stop this betting stuff while I'm ahead, otherwise my new costume will be a wine barrel with two suspenders and a vineyard leaf with holes poked in for a mask."

He then began stroking his chin, giving some sarcastic thought into his idea.

"Hmm...that actually sounds pretty good," he said to himself playfully. "I can be, _'Vineyard Man!'_ Or how about _'Barrel Bob!'_ Maybe _'Mr. Cedar Box.'_ Oh wait, I got it! _'The Whiner!'_ Sounds stupid, and has a lame pun to it! Perfect. My journey to Nerd Kind has finally reached it's end."

**End of Chapter Thirteen**

**Author's comment:** Nothing better than lots of fluff and a lame joke to make your day. Happy Holidays everyone!


	15. Chapter Fouteen

**Before I begin, I'd like to reply to some of the reviewers of my story.**

**Scuba-Steve: **Thank you for all your kind words and your reviews. And it's nice to know that I converted a Terra hater into a Terra lover. Take care!

**Jeff: **Haven't heard from you in a while, but thanks for the reviews. And, lol, thanks for telling the Rob/Rae shippers to bow down to me. Although I don't agree with it, it's still an amusing picture.

**angelicdhampir2oo4: **Thank you, brother, for staying such a consistant reviewer. And good luck with your stories. Peace out.

**Death Jester: **And thank you for reviewing as well. and thanks for calling me a 'master writter.' I don't know about the master part, but I try.

**realfanficts: **It's really nice to know that a Rae/BB shipper likes my stuff. You're one of the few that don't hate nor slam Cyborg around, so you're cool in my book. And I'm sure Vandagirl would feel the same way if you two met. Speaking of which...

**Vandagirl: **I know that this may sound redundant, but thanks again for your writting tips. And tahanks for your comments as well. I don't like to think of my story being 'better' than anyone elses. I just think that all stories are great in their own way, you know what I mean? Well, take care!

**loaned: **lol, we have a Terra hater here. Sorry if this dissapoints. Really, I am. But hey, everyone needs someone to love. So with Rob/Star and Rae/Cy, you can't leave BB out in the cold? Anyway. If you don't want to read anymore, that's cool. But I warn you; you're missing a great fic!

**Sabre-Justice:** Thanks for your comments as well.

**Vbabe11: **I don't know where you are, but you're missing out here! Careful now. You don't want to have to catch up on five or six chapters.

**TalonTheIcon:** Last but definately not least. Where are you, brother? You got a lot of catching up to do, as I do with you. Need to read your new chapters and Operation TITAN as well. See you round, brother!

Peace out, y'all!

**Chapter Fourteen**

**Avengers Assemble**

New York City, Avengers Tower, conference room. 12:36 A.M...

The Avengers sat at the round table in their headquarters' conference room, awaiting the arrival of their leader, Captain America. The members had been called there on high alert, and had rushed as fast as they could to get there wether they wanted too or not. Most of them had been called from their beds, and were somewhere between being asleep and awake.

One of their newest members, Luke Cage, sat in his chair with heavy eyes and drinking a large cup of coffee. Black with lots of sugar in hopes of staying awake. He was a tall, strong black man that rivaled the Man of Steel himself in strength and durability. He was completely unbreakable, and he was now fighting among some of the world's greatest superheroes. But unlike most of his teammates, he didn't wear a costume. Instead, he wore a black leather jacket, a gray muscle shirt, blue jeans, dark sunglasses, and black and white high-tops. He had no hair on his head, but he did sport a smooth goatee that screamed 'player.'

Sitting next to him was the black and yellow clad ninja, Ronin. The size of the outfit and the voice altering mask hid the fact that she was actually a woman, but nonetheless she was as skilled and as deadly as they came. Her weapons of choice were dual katana, and various other weapons used by warriors of the far east. This time, her mask was off. Her Asian features with her golden eyes and black hair were truly a sight to behold. The only physical flaw with her was the large, hand-shaped scar that dominated half her face.

Also at the table was the blonde haired, gold and purple clad hero The Sentry, a being so powerful that if he had too he could go toe to toe with the entire Justice League, and probably succeed.

Sitting directly across from Ronin was the Amazing Spider-Man's female counterpart; the Spectacular Spider-Woman. While red was the dominant color in her costume, she had a yellow design on her front, and her black hair flowed freely from her mask. Unlike Spider-Man, she could not web-swing, stick to walls, and she didn't have the proportionate strength of a spider. So in order to compensate for that, she could fly, generate yellow plasma from her hands, and was a skilled martial artist.

Tony Stark, a.k.a. The Invincible Iron Man: second in command to the Avengers, sat at the end of the table that was closest to the door. His crimson and gold armor reflected in the light of the room, the armor itself being a revolution in military development. However, next to his counterpart the War Machine, his armor was the only one of it's kind.

And finally, there was the most controversial member they had. Sitting at the end of the rounded table closest to the window with his arms crossed and his feet propped on the table sat the former X-Man and walking enigma, Wolverine. While he usually wore a costume that consisted of blue, yellow, black, and some red, this time he wore a brown jacket with blue jeans, brown boots, and a white t-shirt. An unlit, half-smoked cigar hung out of his mouth, and his hair-cut stood in a manner similar to the mask he wore. His sideburns merged with his facial hair, which went almost all the way to his chin. His eyes leered about, his animal-like instincts and senses detecting any and all movements in the room. Or at least they would be, had it not been for the fact he was slightly hungover from the other night of drinking and billiard shooting.

Finally, Captain America had arrived. The Avengers gave their full attention and respect by standing at his arrival as if a judge in a courtroom had entered, with the exception of Wolverine. The Captain had told his team many times that standing up wasn't necessary, for he believed that everyone was his equal, not his underling. Of course, it didn't seem to affect anyone. With the exception of Wolverine, of course. They simply couldn't help it. The Captain had done so much for them, that the least they could do was give him their full attention.

When Captain America took his seat, the other Avengers did likewise.

"My fellow Avengers," said the Captain, his voice that of a true hero. "First off, I'd like to thank you all for coming on such short notice. I realize that the hour is late, so I'll make this meeting as quick as humanly possible."

"First off," he continued. "I just got off the line with Reed Richards, a.k.a. Mr. Fantastic. He has informed me that the symbiote known as Venom had just payed quite an unfriendly visit to their base of operation. He said that he was looking for Spider-Man, who needless to say is still missing. Although it was true that Spider-Man did visit the Fantastic Four before he left New York, he never told them where he was going. As a result, Venom is still searching this city for Spider-Man. And I'm sure all of you know that there won't be any peaceful way of stopping him until he finds Spider-Man."

"Hmpf!" Wolverine scoffed. "Tryin' to change Venom's mind is like raising a bonsai tree. Just ain't worth the effort."

"More like stopping my wife from buying and selling all that worthless crap over the internet," Luke Cage interjected. "It can't be done."

"There's more, I'm afraid," said Captain America. "I'm afraid we've lost track of our lead to the Brotherhood of Evil, Madame Rouge."

There was a brief pause in the room after that. Spider-Woman had encountered Madame Rouge before, and was successful enough to plant a tracking device on her. Apparently, that device had either failed or she was in a place where it was out of reach. Before anyone could ask, Iron Man stood up and walked towards the console on the other end of the room. He spoke as he began typing on the keyboard.

"We've pin-pointed her most recent location before we lost track of her," he said. His mask and helmet gave him a Darth Vader-like voice, only not nearly as deep and without the mechanical breathing sounds. "Our intelligence and information from the S.H.I.E.L.D. Agency has informed us that Madame Rouge and her cohorts were attacked at their stronghold in Siberia. While her many body guards were found dead at the scene, each and everyone was killed by a blade of some kind, there was no trace of Rouge herself. S.H.I.E.L.D. believes that she was taken by Moscow's finest, and is being held in custody by the Russian government."

"Yeah?" said Luke, his voice filled with doubt. "Since when did you start believing what those desk jockeys tell you?"

"Who said I did, Mr. Cage?" said Iron Man, still typing. "Their story seems highly improbable. It would have taken more than a few platoons of troops in order to capture her alive. No normal human could have survived her first line of defense. And with the exception of Omega Red the Russian government has, for the most part, avoided the creation of super-powered soldiers. Therefore, I find S.H.I.E.L.D.'s story to be highly doubtful. I even mentioned to them that it was very unlikely. Or as Wolverine here would have _gracefully _said; _'Someone open up the windows and light a couple matches, 'cause it smells like bullshit in here.'_"

Iron Man's voice had been altered in that last sentence in order to sound like Wolverine himself. He got a good chuckle out of Luke and Spider-Woman and a smirk from Captain America, but Ronin, Sentry, and Wolverine remained silent. Sentry was still getting used to being a hero again, and Ronin seldom laughed. Wolverine? The day he laughs at someone's joke, wether it's good or not, is the day that the Pope gets arrested for shoplifting.

"So," Wolverine said as he took his feet off the table and put his hands behind his head. "Who do ya think is the real culprit 'ere, Iron Bub?"

"Tony?" Captain America motioned Iron Man.

Almost on cue, Iron Man hit the enter key on the keyboard. The lights in the room dimmed, and a holographic, three-dimensional image appeared in the center of the table. The image was still loading, but many sub-images such as a character profile and weapons schematics were shown. The loading bar quickly filled up, and an image of a man appeared. He wore a costume of some sort, which consisted of red and black as the dominant colors. A katana hung from his back, and he wore a mask with black styled eyes and white eye-pieces. His suit covered every inch of his body. He wore a utility belt with all sorts of gadgets and small weapons. The one that drew the most attention was a sawn-off shotgun. He also wore a silver shoulder guard, and a leather strap across his chest. It was then the Avengers read the name above the image.

"Wade Wilson," said Iron Man. "Also known as Deadpool. Mercenary for hire, weapons expert, martial arts master, and deadly assassin."

"You forgot smart ass," said Wolverine. "Guy's got a mouth on 'em big enough for everyone in this buildin'."

"Captain?" Spider-Woman asked. "What makes you and Tony think that this guy kidnaped Madame Rouge? What would be his motives?"

"Simple," said the Captain. "Money. If someone paid him enough, he'd take on us, the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, _and_ the Justice League all at the same time. And if we paid him a penny more, he'd go after his previous employer. Nevertheless, Tony is right. Deadpool is one of the few people in the world capable of capturing Rouge alive _and_ taking on her protection, so whoever hired him knew what they were looking into. Now it's just a question of who hired him and where he took her. However, I'm afraid that there is more..."

The Avengers listened closely.

"Although we lost Rouge's location, we have managed to uncover the Brotherhood of Evil's plan. Their motive is..."

Captain America took a deep breath, almost as if he were disturbed by something.

"...to wipe out every young hero in the world, starting with the Teen Titans."

There was an awkward and painful silence that filled the room. None of the Avengers knew what to say about that. Even Wolverine was taken aback at this. Killing a bunch of skin-heads was one thing, but a bunch of kids? That was just low and wrong on every level. Before any of the Avengers could ask, Captain America stood up and the image of Deadpool vanished. The lights in the room then came back on.

"Here's the plan," he said. "Recapturing Madame Rouge will have to wait. Meanwhile, we have a much more immediate problem to deal with. Right now, we must do everything in our power to protect the young heroes of the world. First, we must detain as many members of the Brotherhood of Evil as humanly possible. I've assigned each of us specific missions. First, Iron Man and I will journey toward the Island of Genosha. There, we'll find as much information as possible. We'll also get in touch with the Justice League, and see if they would be willing to lend a helping hand. Sentry? You will go to Madame Rouge's last known location. Hopefully you will find some sort of clue leading toward the Brotherhood's main headquarters. Ronin and Spider-Woman? Head for the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters and seek console with Charles Xavier. If anyone knows offhand where the Brotherhood is located, it will be him. And lastly, Luke and Wolverine? I want you two to head for Jump City itself. There, you will keep an eye on the Teen Titans until further notice."

"But keep in mind," he said once more. "While on your missions, keep a look-out for any signs of Spider-Man. It's been over a month, and we still have yet to hear from him. Avengers, dismissed."

With that said, the Avengers left and headed their separate ways. Luke and Wolverine headed for the elevator, where Luke tossed his now empty coffee cup in a nearby waste dispenser. They entered the elevator, and Wolverine pressed the button for the garage on the bottom floor.

"Figures," said Luke in between a yawn as he stretched his arms out. "Five other people in the room, and we end up with the baby-sitting job."

"Tell me 'bout it," said Wolverine, re-lighting his cigar. "If I had a nickle for every time old Chuck back at the school would tell me to look after some runt, I'd be a billionaire. I'm the best at what I do, and it ain't baby sittin'."

Soon enough, the elevator made it to the garage. Luke and Wolverine walked toward the other end, where their modes of transportation waited. Luke drove a black 1984 Ford Mustang, supercharged. Wolverine rode a red 1976 American Chopper, with a Canadian flag painted on the gas tank.

"Listen," said Luke. "I gotta go head to my apartment and let my wife know I'm heading outta town. You wanna come?"

"Nah," said Wolverine. "I got a few things I need to take care off myself before we take off. How 'bout we meet at that pub on the outskirts in an hour? What's it called again?"

"The Glover?"

"Yeah, that's it. We'll meet up there and take your car. My bike can't handle another ride across country."

"Alright man. I'll see ya there."

With that said, they left. Luke got in his car and headed straight for his apartment. Wolverine went for his currant residence as well; a small and overly cosy apartment in Brooklyn, not far from where Luke lived. There, he picked up his outfit that he always wore as an X-Man and stuffed it in his duffle bag, among other things. A box of cigars, a couple dirty magazines, some extra clothes, a pair of sunglasses, and a road map of the USA. He then locked up his apartment and holed up his chopper in it's parking garage. He set it so if someone were to hot-wire it, it would explode. Lord help anyone who tried to take it. He then caught a Taxi and headed straight for The Glover.

After about 45 minutes, he arrived at The Glover where Luke was waiting for him. He paid the cab driver and headed for Luke, who was sitting in the driver side. Wolverine tossed his bag in the back seat and sat in the passenger side.

"Okay," said Luke. "Let what's in the bag?"

Nothin' important," said Wolverine. "Just some clothes and a box of stogies."

"Alright then," said Luke. "So here's what we got. We got a box of cigars, a cooler full of beer in the trunk, enough beef jerky to feed a small country, about five grand in travel funds, a full tank of gas, and you got a metal skeleton. We set?"

"Yep," Wolverine said as he reclined his seat. "We're set."

After that, they drove away into the night. Their destination; Jump City.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the country...

Slade slammed against the stone wall as another chain hurled him through the air. His attacker? A renegade Hellspawn seeking to destroy his master, and him in the process if he didn't cooperate. Slade quicky rose to his feet, and took another fighting stance. His hands were then engulfed in flames, and he hurled two large fireballs toward his enemy. They impacted the ground directly in front of him, and they exploded with the ferocity of fifty cubic tons of dynamite. Having burned in the very fires of Hell, the Hellspawn wasn't the least bit phased.

"Are you done yet?" Spawn said in disgust. "Because this _'mine is bigger than yours'_ contest is really staring to piss me off!"

Slade said nothing. Instead he took to the air and flew away as fast as he could, heading straight for Trigon's alter. There, he would console his master on how to deal with this pest of a Hellspawn. Spawn could do many things, but on thing he couldn't do was fly. So he simply cursed and ran after his opponent as fast as his legs could carry him.

Little did they know, they themselves were being watched by another creature from Hell. But this one was quite different than them. Instead of sulking in some back alley or working for a great demon, he worked for the U.S. Government. He stood in the shadows of the trees, watching the fight from the safety of the darkness. He emerged from the shadows, revealing his appearance. He stood at about 6' 5", and wore a large brown trench coat. His skin was bright red, he had a face only a mother could love, and he had one hand that was larger than the other and was made of red stone. On his forehead he sported two horns, filed down to stubs. A long tail stuck out the top of his blue pants, and he had a samurai-like hairdo. On his belt hung the Samaritan, a revolver pistol strong enough to blow a hole through a Sherman Tank. In his stone hand, the Right Hand of Doom, he held...

A 7-Eleven Mega Gulp, filled to the brim with Pepsi.

"Crap," he said after taking a sip. "Lost him again."

They called him Hellboy.

"Hey Blue," Hellboy said into his radio head-set. "This is Red. I lost Slade again. You got a estimate to where he's heading?"

"_Yes, Red,"_ said the fish-like Abe Sapian on the other end of the transmission. _"He's heading north-east, bound straight for the mountains in the area. It seems that our red-cloaked friend is hot on his heels."_

"Which one's Slade again?" said Hellboy with a smirk as he followed the trail. "The one wearing the opera curtain around his neck, or the one wearing the suit made from recycled beer cans?"

"_Very funny, Red."_ said Abe.

Meanwhile, Slade had managed to outrun Spawn and made it to the alter he used to communicate with his master, Trigon. It was nestled deep within a dark, dank cavern buried in the mountains on the outskirts of Jump City. He made his way toward the alter, and knelt before it. Just then, the alter began to glow an ominous red, and four red eyes ridden in flame appeared before him. A portal then opened up, only big enough for Slade to enter.

"Master..." Slade said in obedience. "What do you wish of me?"

"**Slade..."** said Trigon in thundering voice. **"My most loyal servant. A dark time has befallen our plan. Do you know of the renegade Hellspawn that swore to serve my father, only to betray him?"**

"Indeed I do," said Slade, still kneeling. "I've had quite an unpleasant visit from him. Although his powers had been weakened by reviving Terra, he was still more than a match for me."

"**It's more than that," **said Trigon. **"It seems that he has made a pact with those that dwell above. The angels, instead of hunting him, now serve him. I know this, because he seeks to redeem himself and give up being a Hellspawn. He is the one that severed my ties to my daughter, Raven. He's completely eradicated my influence within her, and has replaced it with his own. Now without the gateway, without my jewel, there's no chance for my return."**

"Master?" said Slade as he rose his head. "Do you believe that the Hellspawn also seeks to destroy us?"

"_You bet your ass, bitch!"_

Slade leaped to his feet and turned around, only to find that Spawn had followed him there. His red cloak blacked the only exit, and his chains stood up like angry cobras hissing at their prey.

"**Kill him!"** bellowed Trigon.

It was then that Slade and Spawn lunged at each other, engaging in hand-to-hand combat the second they got close enough. Spawn fought with all his will and might, wanting to conserve his energy for his battle with Trigon. Slade himself gave it his all as well. No way was he going to give up his chance at being flesh and bone again, and to have his revenge against the Teen Titans. Slade dodge most of Spawn's melee attacks, while Spawn absorbed Slade's punches and kicks like water would his stone on the beach. A quick fire punch to Spawn's face dissolved his mask, revealing his charred face and head. Their battle continued, seeming to be going nowhere.

Just then, Slade caught Spawn by surprise. A pillar of fire erupted from beneath that Hellspawn, sending him careening backwards across the room. Spawn landed flat on his back. Somehow, he had become too weak to stand up. It wold take but a moment to regain his strength, but that was more than enough time for his opponent to deal some serious damage. Slade then stood above him, his arms glowing with fire.

"**Good,"** said Trigon's voice.** "Now finish him off!"**

"With pleasure," said Slade as he rose his arms in the air. Just when he was about to deliver the finishing blow...

Three extremely loud gun shots shook the cavern, and Slade now had three bullet holes in his torso bigger than his fist. For some reason, his legs began to grow weak. Impossible! He was immortal! How could a few bullets from a simple gun hinder him? He fell to his knees, and landed on his side like a fallen tree.

Just then, a large figure with a Mega Gulp in one hand and a smoking hand-canon in the other emerged from the cavern's entrance. A few slurping sounds from his cup indicated that it was empty, and he tossed it aside.

"Made those bullets myself, Tin-Head," said Hellboy. "Perfect for downing demons. Holy water, silver shavings, white oak, clove leaf, essence of garlic, and one spoonful of sugar; the works."

Hellboy sheathed his gun, and made his way toward the fallen Spawn. He then held out his right hand offering to help him up.

"Need a lift, hamburger-head?"

Spawn didn't reply. He simply stood up by himself, not taking Hellboy's hand. Still. If it wasn't for this stranger with a red right hand, Spawn surely would be spending the rest of his days as dust right now.

"Thanks..." said Spawn.

"_Spawn!"_

Both Spawn and Hellboy turned in the direction of the voice. There, Richard the Messenger stood before them. He seemed quite frightened over something.

"Look!" he said as he pointed toward the portal. "The portal is closing! Go now, or you may never get a chance to face Trigon again!"

Spawn didn't need to be told twice. Without wasting another second, Spawn bolted toward the closing portal and leaped inside. Hellboy stood agape, contemplating wether or not he should follow this guy. He knew full-well who Trigon was, and read about all things he was capable off. This Slade guy wasn't going anywhere, and the portal got smaller by the second. He had to make a choice fast.

Oh, what the hell?

Just to be safe, Hellboy planted one more bullet in Slade, this one going right in between his eyes. Then, he himself ran in and dove into the portal after Spawn. Had he been a mili-second later, a piece of his tail probably would have come off in the portal.

Richard watched as the portal closed, wondering what fate had in store for the two that entered the portal. He wasn't sure who the red man was, but surely Spawn would stand more of a chance with him.

It was then that Cynthia appeared, and observed her surroundings. The alter still stood, and Slade was on the ground helpless as a baby. The bullets inside wouldn't kill him, but they would keep him pinned down. If Trigon would be destroyed, then Slade would die. But this time, there would be no afterlife. This time he would be cursed to wander the earth as a lost soul, forever severed from all things good and evil. There would be no way he could make contact with anyone.

"Cynthia?" Richard asked. "About Spawn...do you believe he'll survive this?"

"I don't know," said Cynthia, feeling ashamed of herself. "Only time can tell the outcome of this battle. If Spawn succeeds, then the prophecy will never come to pass. Raven will then truly be free, and Spawn himself will be one step closer toward redemption. If he fails, then our plan will have done nothing but delay the inevitable."

Cynthia then lowered her head in shame, a tear rolling down her face.

"Either way, there will be one less horror in this universe."

**End Chapter Fourteen**

Well, not much can be said about this chapter. It's basically a filler, and another thing to keep readers awake at night.

But stay tuned! Next chapter, Raven will finally journey into Cyborg's mind in order to see his nightmares for herself. Will she and Cyborg become even closer, or will Raven get more than what she bargained for? Stay tuned, for...

Welcome to My Nightmare, Rae


	16. Chapter Fifteen

**Chapter Fifteen**

**Welcome to My Nightmare, Rae**

Three days after Terra's return. She had been unconscious for sixteen hours, and awoke very groggily. She was very weak, and could barely stand. Of course, a few generous plates of Starfire's glorg that they both loved so much perked her right up. Still, Terra didn't feel right at first. After all she did, it was a wonder that the Titans let her back in at all. She still felt guilty. She just couldn't help it.

However, her feelings changed for the better when she received a welcome home hug...

From Raven.

After she had been nursed back to health, the Titans informed Terra of their current situations and what she missed while frozen in stone. They told her about Brother Blood, his interest in Cyborg, Raven and the Prophecy with her father, Slade's return and disappearance, the fact that their new member Ricochet was really Spider-Man in disguise hiding from Venom, how Cyborg was connected with him and her mysterious and creepier than Raven rescuer Spawn, and everything in between. Terra was absolutely perplexed over this. She missed a lot while frozen in stone, that's for sure!

So, all was forgiven. Water under the bridge, as was said. So the Titans continued to live their normal, superhero lives. It was around noon now, almost lunch time on a hot day. Cyborg and Robin were beating the crap out of each other in their new fighting game for the Gamestation, Terra and Starfire were making food and fruit smoothies for everyone, Raven sat on the couch reading her book.

And Ricochet was teaching Beast Boy some new joke material, both standing a few feet away from the couch. They stood and acted as if they were roleplaying, giving silly poses with each move.

"Okay BB," said Ricochet, his hands put forward as if he were a movie director. "Jump City is under attack by a radioactive egg monster. You arrive at the scene and they monster stares you down. What do you say?"

Beast Boy stood tall and said. "I say to him, _Hey egg guy. We're the Titans, and prepare to get scrambled!_"

Ricochet let out a painfully sarcastic groan and fell flat on his back. He quickly stood back up and said, "Come on, that sucked!"

"What do you mean it sucked?" asked BB, looking confused and horrified at the same time. "That's the best I could think of!"

"For one," said Ricochet. "It sounded like you stole it from some kid show. Two, threatening a monster is like having a goldfish for a pet; totally pointless. And lastly, it was old twenty years ago! You need to come up with some new material. Something fresh and unexpected."

"Like how?" BB asked, now curious.

"Here's how." said Ricochet. "Never act tough; the only time you can _act_ tough is if you _look_ tough. In the case of you, me, and Robin, we're screwed. We're five foot nothing. We weigh a hundred and nothing. We try and act tough, we just end up looking stupid. So in order to compensate for that, we need to not act tough. Just be ourselves, and greet danger with a wise-crack instead of a threat."

"Okay, I'm lost..." Beast Boy said as he scratched his head.

"Here are few examples," Ricochet continued. "One, you can act angry and yell, _To whoever was cooking eggs with nuclear waste; I hate you!_ Or you can just act casual and tell him, _Say, didn't I just have you for breakfast?_ Any of those would be fine. Okay, from the top. Ready?"

Beast Boy shook it off and steadied himself. "Okay, ready." he said.

"Go!" said Ricochet.

"Oh no!" Beast Boy said as he put his hands on his head, acting scared. "Cyborg's breakfast has come back to haunt us!" he then got out of character. "How was that?"

"That was much better!" said Ricochet. "Now try something a little more subtle. Casual, per say."

"Uh, okay..." Beast Boy cleared his throat. "Let me guess; there's a mutated bacon monster and an orange juice blob attacking other parts of the city too."

Before Ricochet could comment on Beast boy's last joke, Starfire had called out _'The time of afternoon lunching has arrived.' _

"I'll get back to you on that one, BB," said Ricochet. "But right now, let's eat!"

The Titans had walked toward the table and each sat down. Raven stayed at the couch, not feeling very hungry. She just sat and read her book, thinking about all sorts of things. Why she hugged Terra, why her mistrust for Spider-Man simply up and vanished, and all sorts of other stuff. But mostly, she thought about Cyborg and the night she spent with him after the journey into her mind. Although it didn't go past passionate kissing, it was the most wonderful time Raven ever had. The ability to finally feel her emotions without consequence; that feeling alone was almost overwhelming. It almost changed her personality as well. Instead of reading one of her dark and depressing poetry books, she read a romance novel instead. And she was smiling. The whole day, Raven was smiling. If her fanboys or her friends at the Dark Rose Café could see her now, they'd probably die of shock.

Raven was heavily engrossed in her book, when she felt Starfire lightly tap her on the shoulder. Raven met eyes with her Tamaranian friend, and noticed something strange about her. She seemed...sad, for some reason.

"Raven?" Starfire said. "May I speak to you for a moment?"

"Of course, Starfire," Raven said as she closed her book. "What's on your mind?"

Starfire smiled slightly at Raven's kind reaction. It was a welcome change from her ususal sarcastic and monotone remarks.

"I have come to inform you of an important matter that concerns you and friend Cyborg," she said, her voice containing an undertone of guilt. "I have figured that I should tell you know while Cyborg engorges himself with the various consumables placed on the table."

Starfire climbed over the couch and sat next to Raven. She then began to explain herself.

"It is about the other night," Starfire said quietly. "The night that the one called 'Spawn' came to the tower, while you and I were in friend Cyborg's room."

Raven raised an eyebrow, more out of uncharacteristic curiosity than her usual suspicion. "Go on..." she said.

"When friend Cyborg had shown us his pills of inducing slumber," Starfire continued. "I noticed something very peculiar. You know of Beast Boy and his preferred dietary habits, and how his lack of natural proteins and nutrients from real meat often result in low sugar of the blood? Cyborg's pills of sleeping looked exactly like those said sugar pills..."

Raven knew where this was going. Starfire lowered her head, seeming as if she were ashamed of herself.

"When I said that I needed to use the lavatory," said Starfire. "I was not lying, but I did not go to answer nature's call. I...flushed Cyborg's pills down into the latrine and replaced them with some of Beast Boy's medicine. I was in hope that maybe if his nightmares returned, you would be able to find out what exactly he was hiding from us."

Well, not much more needed to be said. With the pills being gone for three days, his dreams would have had to return by now.

Raven put her arm around Starfire in order to comfort her. She pulled Starfire close to her, and spoke with a motherly tone.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Starfire," said Raven. "I know what you did may seem low, but in retrospect you did the right thing. If it's the only way for Cyborg to talk about his nightmare, then so be it. I know that everyone has secrets, and that's fine. But Cyborg was taking it to the point where he might get himself hurt. Downing pills every night can't be healthy, even though he is half human."

Starfire smiled a little. What could she say? Raven was right. The old Raven would have just said something along the lines of _'deal with it,'_ or _'so what?'_ Starfire was liking this Raven a lot more than the original.

"Thank you..." Starfire said with her bright eyes.

"Hey Starfire!" Ricochet called out. "What do you call this stuff?"

Starfire flew from the couch and toward the kitchen, her bubbly personality right back where it was. She flew right where Ricochet stood, who was holding a plate of live worms with various mushrooms, eye-balls from God-knows-what, and some fruits and vegetables from Starfire's home planet, Tamaran. Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy looked on horror-struck, as Ricochet had taken it out of the fridge and had taken several bites out of it before he actually asked what it was. Starfire beamed, and happily explained what it was.

"Oh," she said. "That is my made from the home garfaw-joontax! A delicacy from my home planet, and a dish fit for all occasions! Do you enjoy it, friend Ricochet?"

"Enjoy it?" Ricochet exclaimed. "Next to my Aunt May's meatloaf, this is the best thing I've ever tasted in my life!"

Ricochet then began to dig into his food just like a wild animal, the other boys looking like they were ready to be sick. Starfire was overwhelmed with joy, seeing as how another one of her friends enjoyed her home world's food.

Meanwhile, Raven was in thought. If what Starfire said was true, then tonight would be the night to see Cyborg's nightmare for herself. She didn't know what she would see, but she was prepared for anything. One way or another, she had to know. And she would find out.

One way or another...

That night...

It was almost midnight now. Raven simply tossed and turned in her bed, unable to sleep. She was almost overwhelmed with anxiety, and she couldn't do anything more than wait for Cyborg's nightmare to trigger her powers. Worst case scenario would be that the remainder of the pills would still be in his system, and still suppressing his dreams until they wear off. If that was the case then Raven would be pulling an all-nighter, and be pretty tired the next day. If losing sleep was all that was at stake, then this would be a breeze. Then again, who knew what she would see in Cyborg's dreams. She may have been part demon, but some things on Earth are more terrible than whatever Hell had in it's deepest, darkest depths. So as far as what she would see in Cyborg's mind, her guess was as good as anyone else's.

Just then, Raven gasped as she sprung upward due to a jolt that ran through her body. It caught her by surprise, but she regained herself when she realized what it was. She had the same feeling before, every time one of Cyborg's nightmares woke her up. So, it was happening. His nightmare started, and it was no or never. She sprung from her bed, not bothering to put her cloak on, and ran for Cyborg's room as fast as she could go. She ran down the hall, turned left, ran down past Starfire's room, past Ricochet's, past Terra's, and finally made it to Cyborg's. She came to a screeching halt, almost losing her balance.

She quietly entered his room, not making a sound. Cyborg lay on his panel, looking as if he had not been having so much as a bad stomach ache. Finally Raven was right next to Cyborg, and all she had to do was climb on him and start the process.

But then came a second thought. Raven and Cyborg were more than just friends now, and she was about to do something very unfaithful. To possibilities could occur from this. One, they get even closer and their relationship becomes unbreakable no matter what. Or two, Cyborg loses all his trust for Raven and their friendship is completely destroyed forever. Raven wondered if maybe she should put this off for a little while, waiting for their relationship to grow a little more before she does this...

Then her logic got in the way. The answer was no. Cyborg didn't want to have these nightmares, and as soon as morning came he was just going to head right over to the drug store and pick up a fresh bottle of pills. Thus starting the cycle all over again. If she wanted to see his nightmare, it was now or never.

She climbed on top of him, straddling the part of his body that would have been his abs. She then gently leaned forward, placing her forehead against his own. She placed her hands on the sides of his face, closed her eyes, and slowly began to chant...

"_Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos. Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos. Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos..."_

Raven was sucked through a portal, leading into the depths of Cyborg's subconscious. There, she would find what was troubling him. What his nightmare was. What made him into a Cyborg...

When Raven opened her eyes, she found herself standing in some sort of lab. This was a glimpse into Cyborg's dream, his memory. No one would see her there. She was as a ghost.

Standing in front of her were two people, among the many scientists. One was a beautiful black woman, possibly in her mid 40's. She was wearing what you would expect a scientist to wear. But standing next to her was Cyborg, only he wasn't Cyborg. Whoever he was, he looked exactly like the alias Stone, whom Cyborg had used to infiltrate the HIVE Academy. Then it hit her like a ton of bricks; that _was_ Cyborg, when he was human. As Raven observed her surroundings, she noticed that the entire lab was in a panic. A large test tube big enough to fit a person inside had been shattered, and sitting in the middle of the room was a half-naked and ghastly looking man with orange hair and a small but muscular body. He seemed as if he were weakened by something, like a lack of sleep or a bad diet. Raven assumed that this man was inside the test tube before whatever broke it.

The lab itself was in lock-down, and there was no escape. Scientists pounded desperately on the six inch thick, steel doors in false hopes of escaping. An alarm was blaring, and everyone was scared out of their wits. Raven wondered why. There didn't seem to be anything dangerous about the place.

Just then, she noticed Cyborg (or Victor in this case,) run up to an emergency fire booth. He shattered the glass with his elbow, and grabbed the fire ax. He then ran toward the seemingly helpless man in the middle of the room, and swung the ax down as if he were chopping firewood. Raven's eyes grey bigger than grapefruits as she watched the man scream in sheer terror and he held his arm out in defense, only to have it chopped off at the elbow in one swipe. It didn't stop there either, oh no. Victor kept hacking at the small man, watching as more and more pieces were taken out of his torso. Finally, Victor finished him off by embedding the ax into the man's head. Right in between his eyes. The man's face froze, and kept the last look of fear plastered to his face. Victor left the ax there, backing away as he took deep, heavy breaths. Raven was completely awestruck. She had imagined a lot of things in her life, but one thing she never thought of was Cyborg butchering someone.

"_Victor!"_ an infuriated voice called out. _"You idiot! You nincompoop! You abominable, sorry excuse for a son! What have you done?" _

Raven turned in the direction of the voice, and met eyes with an elderly black man who was obviously Cyborg's father. Why else would he call Victor his son?

"What have I done?" Victor yelled back at his father, equally furious. "I just saved all our assess from getting chopped into bits! No thanks to you, you pompous asshole!"

"You did nothing of the sort!" his father retorted, walking toward his son. "You just destroyed-no-annihilated all possibilities of creating a disposable soldier! We were weeks from achieving that, and now you have set us back another forty years!"

"I don't care if I set your stupid little science project back a thousand years!" Victor exclaimed, now in his father's face. "Kletus Cassidy is a psychopath, a murderer, **and** one of the highest ranking killers of all time! No good can come from him, and the world is a better place _without_ him! Can't you realize that?"

"All I realize is that my only son is a fool, and a disappointment to the Stone Family name!"

"Why?" Victor yelled. "Because I don't want to be a scientist? Because I could care less about the military? Look at me! I have the ability to lift up the back end of a car, and there are people in the world that would kill for my strength! I want to put that strength to good use, and what good would I do sitting in some damn office pushing pencils? There are fathers out there that would sell their soul for their kid to be in the Olympics, and I have a shot at it! Why can't you just be proud of me for that?"

"Because I could never be proud of a barbaric youth wasting his time and his life practicing in sports that will be long forgotten in a mere matter of decades!"

Victor then violently grabbed his father's shirt, lifting him off the ground so fast that his pants would have come off had he not been wearing a belt.

"Take that back!" Victor demanded.

"Never!" his father exclaimed.

"Take it back before I break your old ass in half!"

"Stop!" this time the woman, who was obviously Cyborg's mother, got in between their fight. Tears were pouring down her eyes. "Stop at once! We're family, and family should never act in such an atrocious way!"

Raven was somewhere in between being sick and being saddened. It seemed that she wasn't the only one in Titans Tower with a wayward father figure.

Just then, total silence befell the room when a scientist observing Cassidy's body was hurled toward the wall. His neck was snapped upon impact, and there was a dent in the steel wall where he hit. He fell to the ground with a blood-churning thud. Every head in the room slowly turned in the direction from where it came, and there was a sight none of them could have been prepared for. Even Raven was shocked.

Cassidy was standing up. The ax was still half-cleaving his head in two, yet he stood up with no effort whatsoever. His eyes were glazed over, and a maniacal grin dominated his face. He was chuckling as well, and absolutely no blood came from his large wounds. He then grabbed the ax and ripped it right out. But instead of tossing it aside like a gardener would toss aside a weed, he threw the ax with deadly accuracy toward Victor. It moved with unmatched speed, and Victor dropped his father in it's wake.

But just before the ax came into contact with Victor's chest, his mother had thrown herself in it's path. The ax pierced her chest, cleaving her heart in two, and her body fell lifelessly to the ground.

"Elinore!" Victor's father screamed, voice filled with denial and sorrow.

"Mom!" Victor yelled in an equal tone of pain and suffering as he caught his fallen matriarch. She felt just like she would in a situation like this; dead weight.

Then, their attention went toward Cassidy. He was slowly walking toward his severed arm, moving as a zombie would. He bent over and picked his arm up, and held it as a child would hold a toy. He held the severed end to his stub of an arm, and...

Three long, thick, blood-like tendrils emerged from the wound and wrapped themselves around the dead arm. Every scientist there, even Victor, looked on horror-struck. Faces turned pale as life returned to Cassidy's fingers, making hideous cracking and popping sounds as the fingers moved. The tendrils that ensnared his hand then turned into an ooze-like substance, wrapping around the entire arm and going up his shoulder. His blood that fell to the floor earlier had seemed to move toward him, as if it were alive. It crawled up his legs and moved toward his open wounds. He then began to laugh hideously and maniacally, and it was then that Raven recognized his voice. It sounded just like the one that belonged to the monster she saw in her mind not three days ago! The one that chased Cyborg...

Soon enough, Cassidy was completely surrounded by the odd substance; stuck to him like a second skin. Fangs stuck out of his now enlarged jaw, claws on his hands and feet scraped the ground, tendrils from his arms and back flailed about, and the laughing never stopped. He then took a crouching pose, ready to attack at any moment. Kletus Cassidy was no longer Kletus Cassidy. He was now the symbiotic offspring from Venom bound with serial killer and psychopath Kletus Cassidy.

He was now Carnage.

Carnage leaped forward with breakneck speed, landing into a crowd of panicked scientists. His right hand turned into what seemed like a living ax, and with one swipe several people were killed instantly. Silas and Victor each ran for cover, Victor carrying his fallen mother. The ax was still embedded in her chest. They his behind some lab equipment, and Carnage continued to slaughter the people there. Raven had fallen to her knees in shock, and even cowered backwards in fear. She watched as Carnage ripped through the defenseless scientists, giving effort that rivaled a child stomping on ants. He ripped them apart as if they were made of tissue, and he was enjoying every minute of it.

"_Victor! No!" _

That was the voice of Cyborg's father. Raven turned in it's direction, and saw Victor holding the ax once again. Although tears were rolling down his face, his eyes gave off an onymous vibration. He was furious, and was set on killing Carnage for murdering his mother. He moved quickly, and he made it over to Carnage within seconds. Carnage's right hand had now become a stabbing weapon, each finger ten inches long and razor-sharp. He had a girl with her ID tag reading 'Sara' pinned to the ground, and was ready to impale her. But just before he was about to run her through, Victor's ax had buried itself in the left side of Carnage's neck. Carnage let out an ear-piercing screech, and Sara scurried away like a frightened gazelle on the run from a hungry lioness. Victor removed the ax and prepared to swing again, but this time Carnage caught him off guard. He spun around quicker than lightning, and delivered a back-handed attack that send Victor flying backwards across the lab.He landed on his back onto some lab gear that Carnage smashed, and no sooner did he fall that Carnage grabbed Victor's ankle and threw him across the room once more.

Finally, Carnage pinned Victor to the ground. His feet pressed against Victor's stomach, and one hand clasping his neck. Not willing to give up so easily, Victor punched Carnage several times in his extended, fang-studded lower jaw. Although Carnage did wince from Victor's attacks, it didn't cause any real damage. Finally Carnage caught Victor's arm as his opponent swung.

"Not bad..." Carnage said in his screechy voice. "Not bad at all...for a human! Ahahahahahaaah!"

What happened next was something Raven couldn't prepare for.

Carnage began to crush Victor's arm, very slowly. Victor grunted in pain, and Raven shivered as she heard hideous popping noises from Victor's arm. Then without warning, Carnage ripped Victor's arm right off from the elbow! Victor threw his head back and cried in agony, clasping his wound with his other arm. Carnage jumped off Victor and began tearing his arm to shreds, even destroying the bone. Finally all that was left of Victor's arm was nothing more than tiny shards of flesh and broken bone. Without wasting a second, Carnage tackled Victor again and began tearing into him like a savage beast. Clawing, slashing, biting, ripping, tearing. Tendrils grabbing at anything, and Victor's cries of ultimate suffering filling the air.

After what seemed like hours, the massacre ended. Dead silence loomed in the air, the only sound being Carnage's breathing. Not much was left of Victor either. His arms and legs were gone, his blood coated him and the area his was in, and a large amount of his torso was obliterated. Even half of his head and a piece of his neck was gone. By all things natural, Victor should have been dead.

But somehow, wether it have been a blessing or a curse, Victor was still alive. He was half-brain dead at this point, and his spirit refused to succumb to the bittersweet embrace of death. Carnage was now growing annoyed. He decided not to play anymore. Now it was time to finish off his prey for good. His entire left arm changed into a giant spear-like appendage, and just when he was ready to end what was left of Victor's life...

**BOOM!**

The entrance that had been sealed off due to the containment breach was blown apart, shards of reinforced steel flying in all directions. Some residue of a red plasma blast was at the edge of the door, and in walked what seemed like a robot of some kind. But his movements were too fluid for him to be a complete machine. Besides, it looked more like a man wearing armor than a full machine. His armor was silver and black, and he stood at a good 6' 4". Following him were about a dozen armed escorts with S.H.I.E.L.D. emblems on their bullet-proof vests. He was obviously leading them. Raven had no idea who he was, but anyone who knew anything about mechanical goods would know exactly who this man was. He was the black and silver clad friend and counterpart to Iron Man...

The War Machine.

"Kletus Cassidy." the War Machine said as he held his arm (which was glowing red) forward. Although his voice seemed robotic, there was an undertone of a black male in his late twenties. "By the authority of S.H.I.E.L.D., by orders of Captain America, and in the name of all things good and decent, you're under arrest."

Carnage let out a screech of defiance and leapt toward the War Machine. War Machine smirked under his helmet. He knew this was coming.

When Carnage was literally inches from War Machine, a repulser blast from War Machine's arm sent Carnage flying backward at breakneck speed. He hit the wall, dented it, and fell to the floor. But before he could get back up, two mounted canons on War Machine's shoulders shot out two white beams. The laser-like beams were actually highly compressed sonic waves, a symbiote's greatest weakness. Carnage wailed and writhed in agony when the beams came into contact, and the War Machine kept this up for several minutes. When he finally ceased his fire, the people following him rushed toward what was left of Carnage and cuffed him up in super-enhanced handcuffs. They dragged him away, moving very quickly in order to detain him.

"Off to Ryker's Island for you, you sick son of a bitch." the War Machine said as he left. Several of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents stayed behind in order to tend to the wounded, and to identify the bodies as well. Victor's father had stood up from his hiding place, his black face pale as a ghost. He simply stared at the mutilated mass of flesh and bone that was once his son. It seemed as if it dawned on him that moment after so many years of neglecting and shunning his son. His son was dying, and there wasn't much hope for him. Except for one...

"Sara..." Silas said, his voice barely above a whisper.

"What?" Sara said, tears of fear and shock running down her face. She was simply too traumatized to be polite.

"Save my son..."

"How, sir?" she asked. "How in the name of all things sacred are we supposed to keep him alive.

Raven noticed Silas look at something above him, and the one called Sara seemed as if something just caught her eye. Raven also looked where they were looking, and she saw a robotic frame that looked eerily similar to Cyborg's body...

"Put him on the Cyborg Project..."

Just then, all of Raven's surroundings were sucked into a black hole. Anyone else would have lost their sanity at this point, but she knew exactly what was happening. Cyborg was waking up...

Cyborg's dreary eye opened slowly.

"Not again..." he said dully.

He tried to sit up so he could down some more pills, but something was a little off. Someone was laying on top of him with their arms wrapped around him...weeping. He sat up so he could see who, and too his great surprise it was Raven.

"Raven?" he asked, still half asleep. "What are you doing here?"

Raven didn't answer him. She just looked into his eyes, tears cascading down her face. She just looked at him at first. Although she didn't speak, her facial expression basically said _why didn't you tell me?_

"I saw it..." she finally managed to choke out. "I saw everything."

"What?" said Cyborg. He had no idea what she was talking about...but then it hit him.

"I saw your dream," she sobbed. "It was horrible...absolutely horrible."

Raven then buried her head in Cyborg's chest, and continued her crying. Cyborg was simply at a loss for words. So that's what she was doing. She used her powers to invade his dreams, and see for herself what was depriving him of sleep. He would have been mad...if he and Raven weren't so close now. So all he did was embrace the weeping Raven, holding her close. He didn't speak, because the concept of speech was alienated to him. So all he did was hold her and let her weep. They would talk in the morning.

Meanwhile, in the alleys of Brooklyn...

A large blue portal appeared above Rat City, and out of the vortex fell three objects. First, the General of Hell's Army. Second, the Right Hand of Doom. And lastly...

The head of the eighth son of the devil, Trigon.

All three fell to the ground with a thundering crash, denting the concrete below. Hellboy landed flat on his face, while the first part of Spawn to hit the ground was his chest. The bruised and bloodied Hellboy slowly stood up, cracking his back and his neck back into place. His clothed which consisted of a shirt, trench coat, pants, and boots were now reduced to a pair of really bad shorts.

"Man," he groaned. "I'm gonna be sore in the morning."

Hellboy looked back at Spawn, who was laying on his stomach. There wasn't much left of his cloak, and parts of his suit were torn and exposing his charred flesh. He wasn't moving.

"Hey, Meatloaf Man," Hellboy called. "You alright?"

Spawn placed his palm on the ground for support, and slowly lifted his head. He looked Hellboy dead in the eye, his green eyes glowing furiously.

"No," he said painfully. "Right now I'm about as far from alright as I can possibly get."

Spawn managed to stand up, but he teetered about just like a drunk. A lot of his energy had been spent, and it hurt just to take a step. Each move he made hurt him, which came to know surprise. He was up close and personal with Trigon, right after he and Hellboy slaughtered all of his minions. He did most of the fighting, and naturally took the most damage. Still, he had a job to do. He looked over at Trigon's head, laying in a pile of rancid old garbage where it landed. Figures. The only dead thing there, and it landed on the closest thing to padding you'd get in Rat City. Spawn walked toward the head, grabbed it by it's hair, and began to drag it away.

"That's one helluva trophy you got there," said Hellboy, catching Spawn's attention. "Whatchya plan on doin' with it?"

Spawn didn't look at Hellboy. Instead he looked upward into the night, noting the needle top of the Chrysler Building.

"Put it on display." he said as he walked away. Hellboy scoffed as Spawn disappeared into the darkness of the alley.

"Yeah, you're welcome." he said, crossing his arms. "How do ya like that? Even from other monsters I get no respect."

Hellboy then turned in the opposite direction, planning on 'borrowing' a truck and heading back to New Jersey. There were still plenty of hours left in the night, so getting home without being spotted should be a breeze. And the second he got back, he was hitting the shower, and eating every spare-rib in the cafeteria.

As for Spawn? He trip the Chrysler Building had been interrupted by a familiar voice.

"_You've done well, Spawn."_

It was Cynthia.

Spawn looked at her. Imagine that. Even when surrounded by years of rot and filth, she still looked beautiful.

"You have almost completed your task," she continued, a motherly smile on her face. "Your road to redemption is nearly at it's end."

"So what now?" said Spawn coldly. "What is there left to do?"

Cynthia's smile faded.

"I'm afraid now that the last few miles of your journey will be the most difficult." she said.

"What do you mean?" Spawn asked, growing suspicious.

"You have defeated Trigon," she said. "He was your master's favorite son. Now, Malebolgia has cut off all ties to you. No longer will your powers regenerate as the have for years, so I suggest you use what little strength you have left wisely. Slowly but surely, your body with deteriorate, completing the cycle of death."

"When will I fade away?" Spawn asked.

"Look at yourself," Cynthia said as she pointed at the left side of his chest. "The process has already begun..."

Spawn looked at where Cynthia had pointed. There was a wound there that wasn't there a few moments ago. It wouldn't heal, and his necroplasmic blood dripped onto the ground. He applied pressure to the wound in an attempt to make it stop bleeding, but his efforts were in vain. He then looked back at Cynthia.

"There is not much..." Cynthia tried to say.

"Cut the shit," Spawn said sharply. "Just tell me what I must do now before my time is over."

"Very well," Cynthia said. Anyone else would have been offended or scared, but not her. Spawn just did battle with one of the most powerful demons out there. He had the right be at least a little moody. "When you complete whatever you have planned for Trigon's head, return to Jump City. There, you must watch over Raven and her friends. When your powers are nearly depleted, journey to the top of Mount Azure. It is in the outskirts of the city, not far from Crimson Canyon. There, your redemption will be waiting for you."

Before Spawn could answer back, Cynthia disappeared.

"Not much of a choice." said Spawn. "Still, it's better than hanging around New York killing any goon that stumbles in here."

Spawn then scoffed.

"It's a hell of a long walk from here to Jump City," he said. "She could of at least teleported me there or something."

**End Of Chapter 15**

I'm a little skeptic of this chapter here. I wonder if I should change the story ratting to M because of it's content. You guys let me know after you read.

Happy Valentines Day!


	17. Chapter Sixteen

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **And now I present to you...another filler chapter. This one here is significantly shorter than previous entries, but it does answer some questions and, as the title says, tie up some loose ends that has left some readers hanging.And also about the Mature ratting. This fic may seem tame compared to others, but believe me, it will live up to the ratting very soon. After this chapter, things are gonna take a turn for the worst.

At any rate, enjoy!

**Chapter Sixteen**

**Loose Ends Must Be Tied**

Raven sat on Cyborg's couch, watching Cyborg simply lay on his table in thought. It was 7:00 in the morning exactly. Cyborg sat up, and looked at Raven with wondering eyes. Sure, he wanted to talk with Raven, but what was there to say? She saw his nightmare first-hand. She witnessed what Carnage was capable of, she saw how his mother died, and she knew what his relationship with his father was like. Sure, her father wants Raven dead, but Cyborg's father could have cared less if his own son lived or died. And when that fateful day came, Silas denied his son's own death and damned him to live a life as a freak of nature. Outside the life of a superhero, he couldn't function in regular society. Sure, he had more than enough intellect, but everybody refused to accept him as human. With the exception of the Titans, Spider-Man was the only one who treated him like a normal human. But, that wasn't saying much. Spider-Man's DNA and body structure was altered by a genetically engineered spider. So out of technicality, he wasn't human either.

What Silas Stone did to his son truly was as cold blooded as one could possibly get.

"I'm sorry you had to see that, Rae," Cyborg finally said.

"Don't be," Raven said, her old self back on the surface. "I had no right to invade your mind like that. I should have had your permission first."

"Yeah..."

There was silence once again. Simply at a loss for words, and having already wept out half of her bodily fluids, Raven stood up and walked toward the door. Before leaving, she stopped to look back at Cyborg.

"I'll be in my room if you need me," Raven said in her monotone voice. Cyborg simply nodded.

But just before Raven left, a panicked Starfire literally ripped the door off it's hinges. This nearly made Raven and Cyborg jump out of their skins.

"Friends!" Starfire exclaimed, her arms flailing about. "You must come to the room of living at once! The sight on the television baffles the mind!"

Great. Beast Boy probably put on another ridiculous screw-ball comedy again.

"Can't it wait Star?" Cyborg asked. "Now's not really a good..."

"It can not wait!" Starfire yelled right before grabbing her friends by their shoulders and flying toward the living room at border-line mach 1 speed. Raven felt like her brains went into her feet, and Cyborg felt as if he were ready to come apart at the bolts. They made it to the living room within seconds, where Ricochet and the other Titans eye's were glued to the TV. They were watching the news, and most of them seemed completely awestruck.

"What's the meaning of this?" Raven said, growing annoyed.

"Quiet down and watch." Robin said.

Raven and Cyborg simply watched, both confused as ever. They watched, and listened. The news seemed to be broadcasting live from New York, which was in an uproar. The reporter stood with her microphone, standing on top of a building with the Chrysler Building in the background. It was what was spiked on it's needle that caught their attention.

"Man," said Ricochet. "I haven't seen something that ugly since Mary-Jane last made potato salad for my birthday."

"_We're here live from Manhattan,"_ the woman on the TV said. _"Where something truly and utterly disturbing as occurred. As you can clearly see, the head of what appears to be a monster has been literally spiked on the needle top of one of New York's greatest buildings. City Officials and police forces alike are completely dumbfounded, and with The Avengers out of the city there's no telling where it came from. And as you can clearly see, Superman has come all the way from Metropolis to assist in the clearing of this heinous display. As far as we can tell..."_

Terra was a bit oblivious as to who the head belonged to, and Ricochet really could have cared less. He was from New York. He saw stuff like that when he went to check his mail. Sure, the head of a great demon spiked on top of a building was a bit unusual, but what would one do?

Raven on the other hand, as did the rest of the Titans, knew exactly who that was. It was none other than the head of her father, Trigon. It would seem that Spawn had succeeded in his mission. She should have felt good. She should have felt relieved, like she could now take on the whole world.

But, she didn't. For some reason, and overwhelming feeling of dread ran through her. She had a very bad feeling that this was a curse in disguise. Trigon may be gone, but what of Slade? And more so, what about Venom? Spider-Man couldn't hide from him forever. Eventually, he would find him. And when he did, there would be Hell to pay. It wasn't a question of if. It was a question of when.

In the depths of Brooklyn...

Yet another poor mobster was hurled through a glass window and to his doom. He fell twenty stories, screaming like a baby the whole time. When he finally hit the ground his body was liquified, blood, remains of organs, and skin fragments flying about in all directions and painting the area. In the window from wench he was thrown stood his killer, a monstrous scowl dominating his fang studded mouth and black and while face. The white spider insignia on his chest was a beacon for him. Letting all know that Venom was coming.

"Another dead end," Venom scoffed. "Where ever the wall-crawler may be, he's covered his tracks very well."

Venom leapt out the window and began web-swinging away from the mob safe house that he just turned into a funeral home. There were over a hundred mobsters there, and almost every one of them were dead. Not one of them were a complete corpse. The few that Venom did leave alive were need a machine to help them breathe, and would most likely be fed through a plastic tube the rest of their life.

"There's only one more part of the city where we didn't search," Venom said to himself. "If Spider-Man is not found, then we will be forced to search elsewhere."

He took a moment and landed on top of one of New York's many tall buildings. He looked about in all directions, making sure no do-gooder tried to cheap-shot him while he wasn't looking. And with Superman in town helping the city remove that giant head from the Chrysler Building, he'd have to be extra careful.

"Where else could he be?" Venom said to himself. "Titans Tower?"

Somewhere in California, outside Jump City...

"_Gretchen,"_ a calm but stern voiced called out. _"Prepare to convert power generators A and C toward life support."_

"_Look you scuz..." _another voice whined. He caught himself, remembering what happened last time he spoke to his uncle that way. _"Uncle Otto..." _he said after taking a deep breath. _"I told you a thousand times! My name is Gizmo! Not Gretchen!"_

"_Just do as I say!"_ the first voiced bellowed.

The sound of a couple switches were flipped, followed by a load whirring sound.

"_Very good. That should do it. Mr. Wilson? Are you alive? If so, say something immediately."_

The body strapped down to a steel gurney was none other than Slade. How was he still alive? He should be wondering around in oblivion right about now. His only eye opened, and he sat up as if he were a zombie.

"Good," said his rescuer. "You're all right. Vital signs read normal, and both your body structure and your internal organs are fully intact."

Slade looked at the man that the voice belonged to. He was of good height, standing at 6' even. He wore a black trench coat over his green jumpsuit, with four large titanium tentacles moving as if they were alive fused to his back. On the end of each tentacle was a four-pronged claw-like appendage, snapping at anything that got too close for comfort. His nephew, Gretchen Octavious, a.k.a. Gizmo of the HIVE Five, stood at his side at a not-so-impressive 2' 10". His arms were crossed, and a perpetual scowl was plastered to his face.

Dr. Otto Octavious, a.k.a. Doc Ock. How could Slade forget? They had devised a plan in using the Teen Titans to destroy Trigon and take the world for themselves. Of course now, that was hardly necessary. Trigon was dead now, and the Prophecy was now nothing more than a myth joining the ranks of Bigfoot and the yeti. But nevertheless, there was still a question that needed to be answered.

"Not that I am ungrateful," said Slade as he stood up from his table, removing the various plugs and hooks in his skin. "But how were you able to bring me back?"

"There are very few things that science cannot solve, Mr. Wilson." Octavious smirked. "Besides. I've already committed virtually every crime that man has a law for. I feel that it is only fitting that I break the laws of nature as well. But be warned. Your muscle tissue has degraded to dangerous levels. So until you fully recover, I have equipped your armor with muscle and performance enhancing technology. It should be more than enough, just in case you come across an unruly acquaintance."

Slade's armor rested on a table across the room, and made and Slade made his way over there post haste. Octavious was right, as usual. It was hard just to walk, and breathing was a chore in it's own. As soon he made it to his armor, he began to arm himself immediately.

"What of out plan to take out the Titans after Trigon was gone?" said Slade. "From what I know of Venom, he should have found them by now."

Indeed. It was Slade and Octavious that set Spider-Man up. Slade killed Eddie Brock's wife, and Otto provided necessary props such as Spider-Man's mask. They had done much research, and it came to great surprise that Cyborg and Spider-Man were friends. So their plan was to manipulate Venom into killing both Spider-Man and the Teen Titans. But they were pressed for time, due to the coming of the Prophecy. And they weren't given the right amount to look up one small but very important detail.

"I'm afraid that plan has backfired." Octavious said.

"What?" Slade retorted, just finishing putting on his mask. "How? You said that Venom had all of Spider-Man's memories, and that he would search Titans Tower."

"It seems that there was a great flaw in our plan," said Octavious. "Venom does have Spider-Man's memories, but only the memories prior to the separation of the symbiote. My resources have concluded that Spider-Man did not meet this Cyborg character until _after_ the symbiote bound itself with Eddie Brock. So now Venom is still mindlessly searching New York city while Spider-Man is hiding safely in Titans Tower. And need I remind you that Spider-Man is now a member of The Avengers? If they find out, we're done for."

"What makes you so sure of that?" said Slade as he put his hands behind his back. "I have fended off the Justice League myself when the time was necessary. I do believe that you and I can do battle with the Avengers should the time come."

"The Avengers are nothing like the Justice League, Slade." said Ock. "We would not last a minute against them."

"What makes you think that?" said Slade.

"For one," Ock continued. "Unlike the Justice League, the Avengers have no obvious weaknesses. The Sentry is just as powerful as Superman, if not more. But if you throw a piece of Kryptonite at him, he'll only continue to fight. And what's more, the Avengers have recruited members who's killer instincts outweigh the Justice League's a hundred to one. Batman has only killed when there was absolutely no choice, while Wolverine has murdered people in broad daylight simply because they looked at him wrong. Then there's Luke Cage. He may not be nearly as ruthless as Wolverine, but he still doesn't mind spilling blood to get what he wants. Then there's Iron Man. Although he may not be a killer, he is still very powerful. And top of that his technology is a hundred years ahead of the Justice League. His armor alone is the Bat Mobile, the Bat Plane, and the entire defense systems of Wayne Enterprises. And don't even get me started on-"

"You've made your point," Slade interjected. "Very well. Then what of our backup plan?"

"That is no longer an option, I'm afraid." said Ock. "My nephew's plan in controlling the Lizard, though ingenious, proved highly ineffective. The Lizard escaped long before the controlling device could be completed, and was defeated by the Teen Titans with little effort. In the midst of their battle, the self-proclaimed 'Amazing Mumbo Jumbo' was eaten alive."

"And what does the fate of an idiotic magician have to do with our plan?" Slade said.

"Nothing." Ock smirked. "Just pointing out that there's one less fool we have to dispose of when we take over."

Slade walked to one end of the room, his hands behind his back. He was in deep thought, and had to decide quickly what to do.

"Where is Spider-Man now?" he said.

"Still in Titans Tower," said ock. "Under the alias of one _Ricochet._"

Slade stood silent for a moment.

"Very well," he said. "Then I believe the time has come to take matters into my own hands. I will go to New York, and do my best to lead Venom to Jump City. I shall return within the week."

"Suit yourself," said Ock. "But I must warn you. Whatever you do, do not let your guard down around Venom. He only trusts a handful of people, and somehow I doubt one of them is you."

"I'll keep that in mind."

With that, Slade left the lab.

In the middle of a highway in Ohio...

Luke Cage laid on the horn of his car, slowly creeping inch by inch in the seemingly endless traffic jam.

"I don't believe this shit," Luke scoffed. "We've been driving for three days straight, and we ain't even outside Ohio yet! And I swear, if I see one more fucking construction zone I'll puke!" He then gave Wolverine an ugly look. "Too bad we couldn't take a plane..." he said.

"Ain't my fault I can't go through a metal detector," Wolverine said as he tossed his empty coffee cup out the window. "But tell me this; what the hell is so special about these titan kids anyway?"

"Hell if I know," Luke said. "I don't know their names, their powers, or anything. All I do know is that they got a robot, an alien, a demon, and a green booger on their team. Oh, and Batman's little side-kick guy."

"Sounds like a 70's pop group," Wolverine grumbled as he bit off a piece of jerky and chewed like mad.

"Hey!" Luke yelled toward the traffic as he stuck his head out the window. "Move your assess! We ain't got all day!"

Wolverine leaned his head back in his seat and sighed.

"Bub," he said. "This is gonna be one _long_ trip."

**End of Chapter Sixteen**


	18. Chapter Seventeen

**WARNING: **Chapter contains some harsh language, a violent description, and some sexual innuendo (but nothing graphic).

**Chapter Seventeen**

**Preparations**

Two weeks and four days had passed since the news showing of Trigon's head. For a few days after the event, the Titans were a bit on edge. There was no telling what would happen, and for a short while Robin had grown so obsessive and unpredictable that Cyborg resorted to tranquilizing him. After he awoke, things began to quiet down a bit. Raven had reverted back to her old self, much to Starfire's dismay. They were still friends, and they still did their weekly meditation together, but now Starfire would have to settle for Terra when it came to the much more _'girly'_ activities such as braiding their hair and painting their nails. Not that she had a problem with it of course.

So, things had calmed down now. No major villain had shown their face in quite a while, and there was still no signs of Venom finding Spider-Man. So, the Titans had decided to take it easy for a change. Raven retreated to her room so she could meditate, while Cyborg sat in his room contemplating his future actions he had planned for today. And as for Robin, Starfire, Beast Boy, Terra, and Ricochet? They all sat on the couch, each very close to each other. Ricochet sat in the middle, with Robin and Starfire to his right and Beast Boy and Terra to his left. But instead of watching TV or watching Ricochet and BB battle it out on the Gamestation, they were all listening to Ricochet talk about all the adventures and battles he had in his past. Ricochet himself was holding a scrap book, containing pictures and newspaper clippings of his past adventures. The page he was on now had pictures of him and his wife Mary-Jane, along with some pictures of his late Uncle Ben and Aunt May. When he turned the page, Starfire noticed a picture of the man that she and the Titans fought not too long ago.

"I remember him!" Starfire said, pointing to the picture. "He is the man that called himself 'The Shocker,' yet electricity was neither his primary nor secondary weapon. And he seemed to be wearing a quilt instead of a costume."

"Yep, that's the Shocker alright." said Ricochet. "He may have a lame costume, but at least it serves him practical use. Unlike some villains that just look stupid on purpose."

"Like who?" Beast Boy asked, eating out of a bag of organic potato chips. (Baked, not fried.)

"Like this guy here," Ricochet said as he pointed to a picture of a guy in green armor, a purple cape, and a glass dome over his head. "This is Quintin Beck, also known as Mysterio. Come on, look at him! The guy wears a fish bowl over his head for crying out loud, and he thinks it's cool."

Ricochet turned the page. This next page was mostly pictures of buildings and landscapes, so he skipped that one. However on the next page, there was a particular picture that caught the attention of the Titans, and completely baffled them as well. It was a picture of Cyborg, sitting down on a bed with a look on his face that was best described as somewhere in between aroused and freaked out. Straddling him was a woman, with orange-reddish hair and wearing a suit that looked as if it were made entirely of reptile scales. What was more was that it looked as if the suit itself were alive. But the thing was, it only covered basically what needed to be covered. Well over 95 percent of her was naked skin. She was running her clawed fingers over Cyborg's chest, a sultry smile on her face.

"Who's that?" Terra asked, completely perplexed.

"That's Sara Pezzini," Ricochet said, rubbing the back of his head. "Also known as The Witchblade. New York detective, has some odd shape shifting power, will kill you if you piss her off, and had a thing for Vic. Just the thought of those two together makes me feel like I need a long shower."

"I must ask," said Starfire. "Did this _'Witchblade,'_ as they sometimes crudely say here on Earth,_ 'do the banging'_ with friend Cyborg?"

This question caught the rest off guard. They knew Starfire was smarter than most people gave her credit for, but now she understood slang? And what they meant as well? Perhaps she wasn't as innocent as they thought.

"Thankfully, no," Ricochet said. "The second she realized I took the picture, she threw us both out of her house. Then we ran as away as fast as we could. Eventually we ended up in Boston, and realized we ran too far."

"Cyborg's always had a way with the ladies, that's for sure." Robin smirked. Starfire giggled at this.

"What does he mean by that?" a confused Terra whispered to Beast Boy.

"Long story," said Beast Boy, stuffing in another mouthful of chips. "Involving a pink haired villain and the leader of Titans East. Neither of which worked out very well."

"Dost my ears deceive me?" Robin said in a mocking voice as he held his hand by his ear. "I think Beast Boy just said something intelligent."

Ricochet continued flipping through pages, talking about whatever the picture or clipping had to do with. There were pictures of many heroes, and many villains as well. There was one newspaper clipping with picture of Spider-Man crouching in front of the Bat Signal, his hands on his head and his fingers pointing upwards to imitate bat ears. Standing next to him was the Dark Knight himself, his arms crossed and an annoyed look on his face. The headline read, "Wall-Crawler and Dark Knight: Allies?" This was definitely new to Robin. How he never found out for himself or why Batman never told him about the encounter was beyond him.

When Ricochet turned the page, they all froze. Terra sat with her mouth agape, and Starfire's eyes looked bigger than oranges. Chewed up chips fell from Beast Boy's gaping mouth, and even Robin looked a little on edge.

"Oh..." said Ricochet.

There was a newspaper clipping that took up the entire pages on this one. The paper itself was from the Daily Bugle, and it's front page was taped in the book. One the picture was a creature that looked like Venom, only smaller and no spider insignia on his chest. He was also red with black swirls and stripes on his body, and tendrils flailed about in it's back. What baffled the mind was that it wasn't the only one in the picture. Just to it's right was none other than Venom, holding the creature in a headlock. To the left of the creature was Spider-Man twisting it's arm, and his costume was ripped and torn. In the background was a bruised, bloodied, and disgruntled man wielding a shotgun. His black t-shirt with the white skull on it made it obvious that he was The Punisher. On the ground in front of Spider-Man lay the fallen Captain America, mustering all his strength just to stand up. Not far from him was an equally injured woman with long white hair, wearing skin-tight leather with white gloves and a black mask that covered around her eyes. She must have been The Black Cat, one of Spidey's love interests that he told the Titans about. Floating in the air in the back of the picture and flying toward the battle were none other than Iron Man and The Mighty Thor. And another that they didn't recognize at first, but then realized that it was the blue wearing Cloak, an acquaintance of Spider-Man. And all around the city, destruction could be seen. Cars were turned over and torn in half, every window in site was shattered, the pavement and asphalt was uprooted like a giant worm had burrowed underground, and there were dead bodies as far as the eye could see. The corpses were horribly mutilated, and none were distinguishable.

The headline read, _Maximum Carnage._

"I forgot this was here..." said Ricochet.

Meanwhile, Cyborg had exited his room, walked through the tower, and was now standing in front of the door to Raven's room. Even since the deal with Raven's dead father, she had become increasingly aloof. She was spending more and more time in her room, and she hardly ever did anything apart from reading and meditating. Indeed, she had truly become her old self again. So, Cyborg had a plan to try and help Raven relax a little. He had spent time in his room building up the courage to ask her, and had now come out to ask her. Not wasting another second, he knocked on the door as gently as he could. At first there was no answer, and Cyborg fought the urge to knock again. Last time he knocked a little harder he knocked her door down. And what if she were getting dressed? The last thing he needed was to see Raven naked and have her mad at him for months.

After what seemed like an hour, the door slid slightly open. Half of Raven's face peaked out, having to look up slightly when she realized it was Cyborg.

"What?" she asked.

"Hey, Rae," said Cyborg, slightly taken aback with Raven's greeting. "Can I come in for a minute?"

Raven shrugged. "Sure..." she said.

The door opened the rest of the way, and Cyborg walked right in. He took a quick look around. Not much had changed in her room, that was for sure. He couldn't understand it. Here's her room, staying virtually the same all year around, while he re-organized his at least twice a month. Guess he's just the kinda guy that can't stand the same thing all the time. But enough browsing. It was time for him to do what he came to do.

"Anyway," said Cyborg as he faced Raven. "I was wondering, if maybe you're free this Friday..." he paused a moment, gaining his words. He nervously put his hand behind his head and bit his lip. "You know, since things have been kinda quiet lately, both in the city and the tower, I was thinking if...well..."

"Well what?" Raven asked, crossing her arms.

Cyborg stood tall and took a deep breath.

"Raven," he said in smooth and calm voice. "Would you like to have dinner with me this Friday at the Great Reef?"

Raven's stern look had turned to a look of surprise. The Great Reef was a steak and seafood restaurant over by Jump City Bay, and it was very high class. They won't even let you in if you don't wear a dress and three piece suit.

"The Great Reef?" she asked. "But...isn't that the most expensive place in Jump City?"

Cyborg smiled sheepishly, holding his hands behind his back.

"It is a little pricey..." he said. "But I was hoping that it would, I don't know, relax you a little. Now If you don't want to go, that's fine. I'm sure you've got your reasons for..."

"I'd love to."

Cyborg was stunned at first, but he quickly regained himself.

"Okay then," he said as he relaxed his arms. "So, how does this Friday at seven thirty sound?"

Raven's lip curved upwards very slightly. Although it was her first smile in days, it was still a loving and sincere smile.

"It's a date." she said.

Cyborg then kindly left, filled with relief and a smile on his face. When he was gone, Raven let out a sigh as she flopped on her bed. She lay there a moment, lost in thought. She closed her eyes, thing about the coming events of Friday. Spending the evening with Cyborg, having a nice dinner, maybe going for a walk afterwards, wearing nice clothes...

Raven gasped as she shot upwards, her eyes wide with fear. The fact had hit her like a ton of bricks. She was scared, but not of her evil father or her powers coming to life and attacking her friends. She was scared of something that she never thought she would be scared of.

"I don't have a dress..."

Meanwhile, In New York City...

The sun was setting over the horizon, casting it's orange glow on the concrete jungle that was New York City. Temperature was 71 degrees F, and it was very windy. So windy in fact that people were encouraged to stay indoors for the night. It was rush hour now, and people were heading home from their daily jobs. Some took the bus, while others took a cap or the subway. There was a great number of people that drove their own cars, while everyone else walked home. They all made their own stops along the way, such as stopping for gas or grabbing something to eat or drink. A few even made some stops for business, talking on their cell phones and scheduling appointments as they went.

But there was one who was above them all...quite literally in fact.

Venom had crouched on Manhattan's highest point; the tower of the Empire State Building. He sat there, resting his monstrous chin in his hand. The position he took mocked the pose of the famous statue of Aristotle. Except he wasn't thinking about philosophy. No, he thought of a much more immediate problem; where is Spider-Man? While he thought, he looked at his surroundings. From this height, he could see everything. He could see the Baxter Building, the Statue of Liberty, the very depths of Brooklyn, the Kingpin's penthouse, Stark Towers (now the New Avengers Tower,) and of course the very ocean itself.

He suddenly felt something wrap around his ankle. Venom observed this intrusion, and realized that it was a newspaper. How the wind had managed to blow something that small all the way up where he was, he had no idea. For some unexplained reason he was compelled to open it and see what it said. He reached down with his clawed fingers and grabbed it, pulling it up to him and opening it up so he could read. It was none other than the Daily Bugle, and today's issue at that. It was the front page as well. There was a large picture on front, an animated caricature at that. It was a drawing of Spider-Man, but instead of the spider symbol on his chest there was a question mark. The headline read _'Masked-Menace Still At Large.'_

Venom let out a loathsome growl, tearing the paper to shreds and letting the pieces blow away in the wind. He looked forward, observing the city once again.

"Where are you Spider-Man?" he said, his voice filled with hatred. "We know you're out there someplace, but_ where?_ We've searched every square inch of this stinking city, and you're no place to be found! The only thing we haven't done is digging up every freaking grave in the cemeteries and checking the caskets!"

He took a few deep breaths, attempting to calm himself. Didn't do him a bit of good. Now he felt like killing something. It wasn't healthy to upset a Symbiote; especially one as dangerous as Venom. He then put his hand over his eyes, lowering his head and beginning to think harder.

"Where could he be?"

Venom then thought about his wife. He thought of her beautiful brown hair, her elegant smile, her soft, smooth skin, and most of all her caring nature. She would never hurt a fly, and all she ever wanted was for Eddie Brock to be happy. She never stopped smiling, and she was always there for him. Venom had thought that no body could love a monster like him, but his new wife had proved him wrong.

He also thought about the last time he saw her alive. She had just finished making him breakfast, and she had the same smile that she always had. Brock left as he always did, working eight hours at the docks and spending another six hours scouring the city of San Francisco for the anyone who would think of doing wrong. While Venom had seen and fought things that most people only see in their nightmares, nothing could have prepared him for what was waiting for him back home.

He thought of his wife again. He thought of how she was when he came home that fateful night. It was so horrible that there were no words that could describe it. He thought of how she lay on the floor, her neck and limbs bent and twisted at unnatural angles. He thought of her once cream colored skin and how it was then a deathly pale. Her eyes were glazed over, nearly every hair on her head torn out by their roots. And how her abdomen was split open from the top of her breast-plate all the way down past her naval. She was gutted like a fish, the entire apartment room soaked in her blood and decorated with her entrails. But most of all, the red mask bunched up in her cold, dead fingers. The mask of Spider-Man.

Venom's head shot upwards, he fangs glistening in the remaining sunlight.

"We _will_ find him, my love," he said to the clouds, as if he were speaking to his dead wife. "If it's the last thing we ever do, the wall-crawler will pay for what he has done to you! You will be avenged, and God as our witness we'll never allow anyone on this planet to share the same fate as I have."

He lowered his head again, remembering his wife's name. Just then the Symbiote sheathed itself from Eddie Brock's head, his blond hair flowing in the wind.

"I miss you dearly," he said. "We will be together again someday. But until the sweet embrace of death comes to me, all I have left of you...is your name."

A tear shed down his face, falling off and careening to the streets below. All he had was her name; a name he could never forget.

"_Cynthia..."_

Just then something caught his attention. The Symbiote engulfed Brock's head again, and he shot his gaze directly behind him. He looked down in the city below, and could see red and purple lights flashing in some alley. Not wasting a second, Venom leaped in the air and performed a swan dive in the light's direction. He fell about fifty stories, finally firing his webbing forward and swinging with grace and agility. He landed on one of the buildings, and began leaping from roof-top to roof-top in the light's direction. When he came in for a closer look, he observed the event. There were two people, one male one female. The male was wielding a staff and wore a mostly black costume, with a skull-like mask with a red 'X' on it. The female was taller than him, with a light orange skin and black hair. Her hands were glowing purple, as were her eyes. She wore armor that looked like nothing Venom had ever seen before. Both of them were fighting off robots pf some kind. Black and gray humanoid robots, with bronze face plates.

Then it hit Venom. Those two were Red-X and Blackfire, New York's new but notorious thieves. They stole anything that was worth something, and cared little for anything besides themselves. There were even rumors flying around that they were lovers. Whatever the case, they had come to New York not a month ago. Venom probably would have taken them out had they posed any threat, but so far all Red-X and Blackfire cared about was money. They hadn't killed anyone yet, and they hadn't stolen from anyone that would truly need the money. So, he had let them be. They didn't appear to see him, and they were quickly running out of energy. Blackfire's eyes were beginning to dim, and Red-X looked as if he had just run out of tricks.

Then out of nowhere, a net had engulfed them both. The net had come from a kid in red armor, who was apparently leading the robots. He walked toward them, and Venom could have sworn that he heard laughing.

"_This is just too good,"_ the kid in the robot said. _"Once Slade here's that Adonis has succeeded where New York's finest have failed, I'm gonna be rich!"_

Now Venom had seen enough.

Red-X and Blackfire struggled to try and get out of the net. Red-X's carbide saw had broke when he tried cutting the rope, and Blackfire fought with all her alien strength to try and escape.

"Don't bother," Adonis exclaimed. "Those ropes are made out of adamantium. You can't break it. Now that Adonis has caught you, I'm-"

"We know!" Blackfire spat. "We heard you the first time! You're gonna be rich!"

"Notice it's only the idiot villains that take delight in repeating themselves." Red-X said.

Before Adonis could reply, he was knocked flat on his face. He was then flipped on his back so he could look at his attacker. He soiled himself when he realized who it was. A large, clawed hand had punched right through the armor and ripped Adonis right out of his machine by his neck. Venom held the frail boy helplessly in the air, eyeing him like a bully would a defenseless school boy.

"We hate it when people refer to themselves in the third person." said Venom.

With effortless ease, Venom snapped Adonis' neck like a twig. His body fell lifelessly to the ground. Just then the remaining robots began to attack, but Venom saw them coming. He began to attack will all his might, taking out four to five bots with one swipe. Parts flew in all directions, and Red-X and Blackfire watched in amazement. Within a matter of moments, every sing bot was down and out. Venom then looked over at the two captives, and contemplated on wether he should leave them there or let them out. That question was answered when Red-X had figured out a way to unravel the net. Red-X helped Blackfire to her feet. When they were free, the three adversaries had stared each other down. Venom stood ready for anything, expecting them to attack. Red-X did the same, while Blackfire stood behind in order to regain her energy.

Just them something caught their attention. It was clapping. Slow, eerie clapping.

"_Bravo,"_ said a new voice. _"You live up to your reputation, Venom. Something rare these days."_

A man then emerged from the darkness of the alley, wearing attire and armor similar to that of the robots that Venom had reduced to scrap-metal. He appeared to only have one eye.

"Who the hell are you?" Venom scoffed.

"Slade." the man said. "I've been looking for you for quite some time, Venom."

Venom turned so he was now facing Slade instead of Red-X. Venom didn't trust this guy. Just the sound of his voice was enough evidence to say this guy was bad news.

"That so?" said Venom, crossing his arms. "You don't look like the law, so that's bought you a minute. Better talk fast."

"Then I'll get to the point." said Slade. "I know that you're looking for Spider-Man. Why you're doing so is none of my business, but I just so happen to know where he's been hiding while you've torn this city apart looking for him."

An annoyed frown fell on Venom's face. For a monster, his face was quite expressive.

"Okay, smart-ass." Venom said. "We'll play your little game. Where is Spider-Man hiding?"

"He's over in Jump City, hiding with the Teen Titans in their little playhouse on the ocean." said Slade.

Venom let out a very light snarl.

"Say," said Venom, acting as if he were smelling the air. "Do you smell that? Maybe there's a cattle farm someplace outside the city."

Venom then walked toward Slade and stopped when they were only inches apart. Venom was a solid six inches taller than Slade, and must have outweighed the armor clad man by at least a hundred pounds.

"Because it smells like bullshit out here." Venom scoffed.

"I speak the truth, Venom." said Slade. "What makes you believe I would lie?"

"The Teen Titans are heroes," said Venom. "They give up their lives as adolescents so that they could protect the innocent. They wouldn't give shelter to a monster like Spider-Man."

"Believe what you will," said Slade, beginning to grow annoyed himself. "But Spider-Man is with the Teen Titans as we speak. And I'm sure he's telling them the tale of whatever he's done to anger you so much. Now will you go or not?"

"Answer this question first, Slade." Venom said licking his teeth clean. "You're answer will determine our action. So, does your dick reach your asshole?"

Slade did not expect this. At the moment he was somewhere in between losing his temper and wondering if Venom was as smart as people said.

"What?" said Slade.

"Does your dick reach your asshole?" Venom pressed.

"You must be joking." Slade retorted.

"We _never_ joke, Slade!" Venom barked. "Now answer the question. If your dick doesn't reach your ass, then our answer is no."

Slade gritted his teeth. Apparently there was no way around this. It may be undignified, but at least it would get Venom over to Jump City like he and Ock had planned in the first place.

"Very well," said Slade. "Then yes."

Venom gave a sadistic smile.

"Good," he said. "Well, since your dick does indeed reach your asshole, then our answer is..."

Without warning Venom's look of anger had returned, and he grabbed Slade by the neck so hard that had he not been wearing armor he would have been killed. Venom lifted him up to eye level and said...

"Go fuck yourself!"

With that, Venom tossed Slade right through a brick wall, and watched as bricks and pieces of concrete buried Slade alive. He then turned to handle Red-X and Blackfire, but it appeared that they had already fled. Venom just scoffed once again. There was now nothing left for him to do in the city. He was worn out and tired, and was in need of rest.

"No point in staying here anymore," he said. "For now, it's time to go home. We'll continue our search for Spider-Man when we've gained our energy back."

Venom leaped in the air once again and began web-swinging toward Grand Central Station. Since his Symbiote allowed him to change his appearance at will, he planned on taking he form of some other average joe and taking a one-way ticket back to San Francisco. When he was out of sight, Slade had emerged from the pile of rubble. His armor was covered in dirt and dust, and he was beyond furious.

"Nobody insults me." he said coldly.

Meanwhile, Red-X and Blackfire had taken shelter on one of the roof-tops and watched Venom as he swung away.

"Well," said Blackfire. "What do we do now?"

"We follow him." said Red-X, taking Blackfire off guard for a moment. "It's takes some guts to do what he just did to that Slade guy. Don't know if he's either really brave or really stupid. Whatever the reason, he could prove to be a great ally."

Several hours later...

Eddie Brock sat in his seat on the train. It was a train heading for San Francisco, with two stops along the way. One in Chicago, and one in Jump City. It would be a four day trip, so it would be around Friday evening when he arrived. He wrapped his train blanket around him, and soon fell asleep.

But in the very last car were Red-X and Blackfire, stowing away for the trip. They had barricaded themselves there before the train left, and amazingly didn't get caught. The workers at the station has assumed that there were repairs that needed to be made, and put a no trespassing and do not enter signs on it. They had taken the essentials. Place to sleep, things to keep warm, some food and drink, and Red-X brought a deck of cards to kill time.

"What now?" said Blackfire.

"Now we wait." said Red-X.

Blackfire then stood up and reached into her purse, pulling out what looked to Red-X like a roll of gold plastic. She smiled as she let it unroll itself, hitting the floor when it was out. Had Red-X not been wearing a mask, Blackfire would have seen his bright red blush. As he watched Blackfire give a seductive smirk as she tore one of the rubbers away, he realized that Blackfire had no intention of playing cards. She gave him a light nudge (which knocked him right onto the mattress on his back,) and straddled him as she opened the plastic up.

"Let's see here," she said with a sultry smile. "We've got four days on this trip, and fifty six of these ingenious little rubbers. Now I'd like to use them all, but let's see if we can use at least forty of them."

Red-X just laid back and let Blackfire begin to remove his clothes. One thing was for sure. This was going to be one of the longest four days of his life.

**End Chapter Seventeen**

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **PERVERT ALERT! Yeah, the Red-X/Blackfire thing is based on a running joke through the TT fandom. Many people think those two would kick it off much like Robin and Starfire, only more evil and perverted. Now, don't worry here! They are not underage. Blackfire is at least 22, and who knows how old X is. Just old enough, that's for sure.

And Vandagirl? I know you're not fond of premarital intercourse, but you have to look at it this way. X and Blackfire are evil. I don't think they care about being moral.

Anyway, another thing. For all of you that thought making Gizmo Doc Ock's nephew was a good idea? I'm glad you liked it, but it wasn't my idea. My author buddy and reviewer EVIL BOB thought of it.


	19. Chapter Eighteen

**Chapter Eighteen**

**All's Fair with Love and Symbiotes**

Friday afternoon. It was mere hours before Raven's date with Cyborg, and Raven still didn't have a dress. She had torn her wardrobe completely apart searching for something at least somewhat formal, and had found nothing but black leotards and blue cloaks. She wouldn't be caught dead going to the mall by herself, and it was highly unlikely that Terra even had something that would fit Raven, let alone something formal. So, that left only one other option.

Starfire.

"I know I'm gonna regret this someday." Raven droned as she stood in front of Starfire's bedroom door. She then gave a gentle but audible knock.

"One moment please..." came Starfire's muffled voice. Raven heard a few rustling noises, and could detect signs of quick haste. Then Starfire opened the door, greeting her friend in her usual bubbly manner. Raven was a bit taken aback at first at what she saw. Starfire was wearing nothing but her bra, some butt-hugger blue jeans that showed every curve her lower body had, and a pair of white tennis shoes. Raven couldn't help but stare, especially at Starfire's torso. Evidently Star was a bit more well-endowed than her regular clothes revealed.

"Hello, friend Raven," said Starfire. "How are you feeling on this glorious day?"

"Um," Raven stammered, eying Starfire's appearance. "Did I come at a bad time?"

"Not at all," Starfire said with a bright smile. "I was merely preparing for my time I shall be spending with Robin this evening. Please, do come in."

Starfire urged Raven inside, shutting the door afterwards. She then went back to her bed, where an organized assortment of shirts were laid about. No doubt Raven had come while Starfire was selecting a shirt for her said evening with Robin. Raven had taken a quick glance around Starfire's room, mostly out of impulse than anything else. When Raven first saw Starfire's room, it was plagued with pink. Now, it had changed drastically. The walls and ceiling were still pink, but there was a blue rug on the floor. There were posters of pop-culture icons everywhere, and there was a modest book-shelf on the east wall. Each book contained topics on world history and culture, and there were a few books on meditation as well. No doubt that Starfire was adapting to Earth very well. Of course, this didn't come as much of a surprise to Raven. In spite of what many outsiders thought, Starfire wasn't stupid. It only came natural that Starfire would eventually evolve and adapt to this world.

"Now then," Starfire said as she slipped into a shirt that said _'I Love Geeks'_ on it. "How may I be of assistance?"

"Star?" Raven said flatly. "I can't think of any way to say this to where it wouldn't sound weird coming out of my mouth, so I'll just say it." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, sighing before speaking again. "Cyborg and I have a date tonight. We're going to a formal dinner, and I don't have anything to wear...can you please let me borrow a dress?"

Raven's eyes were still closed, and she was expecting the worst. Well, what the worst would be in this case, being Starfire giving Raven another one of her hugs of death. Raven was embraced alright, but...it was gentle. Almost motherly. Raven opened her eyes, and she was in the arms of Starfire.

"My dear friend," Starfire said with a loving grin. "I would be most honored to assist you in an event as important as the date that is your first."

Starfire then let Raven go, escorting her toward her closet. Starfire opened the door and removed half a dozen dresses, each and every one formal. She handed the bundle to Raven, and then escorted her back over to the bed.

"Select whatever dress you like," Starfire said. "If none of these are to your tastes, then you may select another bunch. I have many more, for when the occasion..."

Starfire halted her words, once she realized that Raven was trembling. Her face was buried in the dresses Starfire gave her, and Starfire could have sworn that she heard whimpering. Starfire cautiously approached her friend, a worried look on her face.

"Raven?" she asked in a motherly tone. "What ever is the matter?"

Raven took her face away from the dress and looked at Starfire. Even though tears were in her eyes, a smile was on her face.

"Starfire?" she said in a low voice. "Thank you. My own mother wouldn't have done something like this for me. You have no idea...how happy you made me."

Two hours later...

Meanwhile, Cyborg was in his room preparing for the night. He had just finished polishing his armor, and now he was getting himself dressed for the night. His holo-rings weren't working right, but he had prepared for such a time. In his closet, along with his assortment of spare parts, was a tailored suit specially made to fit his mechanical frame without making his more protruding parts show. It was a baby blue Armani, with a black tie and a modest undershirt. Little bit of cologne for scent, and some lubricants in his joints so there would be no offensive squeaking noises his arms and legs might make. After adjusting his tie, he walked over to one end of his room and observed himself in the mirror.

"Cy, my man," he said to himself with a smirk. "You never looked better."

He looked over at the clock. 6:45 pm, 15 minutes before his big date with Raven. He shrugged, took a deep breath, and walked toward the living room. He made it there, where Robin was sitting at the couch watching some weird reality show while Beast Boy, Terra, and Ricochet were in the kitchen. Robin was out of his costume and into some civies, no doubt having plans to go out in the city tonight. He wore a plain red shirt, dark blue jeans, some butt-ugly red and yellow shoes, a black leather jacket, and yellow tinted sunglasses with red frames. Ricochet was eating a flooze loaf sandwich while giving Beast Boy a few life lessons, and Terra made herself a flooze loaf sandwich with so many condiments that the sandwich was six inches high. Cyborg couldn't help but stare for a moment. Terra ate everything Cyborg ate pound for pound, yet she never gained so much as an ounce. Cyborg couldn't help but wonder where she put it all.

Flooze loaf was another one of Starfire's Tamaranian foods. What they did was take the eyeball (which was about as big as a football) of a flooze fish and formed it into a cylinder-like object. They would then stuff it with ground meat from the flooze fish, along with live worms, mushrooms, and many types of Tamaranian plantation. They would then bury it for three days, dig it back up, and bake it for seven days. Ricochet swore on his life that it tasted just like meatloaf, only slightly more greasy.

Cyborg smiled as he watched Ricochet talk with Beast Boy as he ate. Beast Boy listened very carefully, and absorbed every bit of Ricochet's information like a sponge. Cyborg thought this day would never come, but now thanks to an old friend it was happening before his very eyes. Beast Boy was growing up.

Cyborg walked over to the couch and sat next to Robin, deciding to watch some TV while waiting for Raven.

"Nice suit," Robin commented as he looked at Cyborg.

"Thanks," Cyborg said, afterwards eying Robin. "Wish I could say the same about you though." He said playfully. Robin only smirked at his friend's jab.

"It's the shoes, isn't it?" Robin asked. "Yeah, I've been needing to get rid of these things for a while. For obvious reasons, I might add."

"Ah, don't worry too much about it." said Cyborg, and undertone of teasing in his voice. "After all, Starfire would love you no matter what you wore."

Robin blushed slightly, but before he could come up with a clever comeback Starfire entered the room in her own civilian clothing. In addition to her jeans, shoes, and shirts, she also wore a Jump City Great White's baseball jacket. Robin got up from the couch and walked toward her, a smile on his face.

"So Star," Cyborg said from the couch. "What do you and Rob have planned for tonight?"

"Well," Starfire began. "Firstly, Robin was going to take me out to see a motion picture, and afterwards go for a walk in the park. And to finish our evening, we were hoping to dine on the hilltop while watching the setting of the sun."

"Sounds like a plan to me," Terra said as she swallowed a mouthful of her monstrous sandwich.

"Man," Beast Boy said. "I feel sorry for anyone who eyes you up Star. Seeing how Robin gets over Slade, it's almost scary to think about what he'd do to a peeping tom."

Everybody in the room except Robin laughed. Ricochet then gave BB a light elbow.

"See?" he said. "Now _that _was funny. Just remember what I told you about humor. You do, right?"

"Of course!" Beast Boy said happily. "Puns are only funny if you don't _try_ to make them funny. Bodily functions are never cute, nor are they even remotely funny. The real problem with villains, particularly goblins, is that they always think they're funnier than you. Rice cakes are the root of all evil, they just are, and just say no to cloning."

"Bingo!" Ricochet exclaimed as he gave BB a manly pat on the back.

Robin and Starfire said their good evenings to the team, and were just about to leave. But then...

"Whoa!" Terra exclaimed.

Everyone turned their attention toward what Terra was pointing out, and everyone (save for Starfire) stared in amazement. Cyborg especially, for it was none other than Raven. Her hair had a nice shine to it, and she was wearing a beautiful purple dress with matching shoes, and a formal feminine jacket so she could keep warm later. A small, but joyful smile played across her face. Cyborg put off his look of shock and walked toward his date, holding his arm out like a gentlemen.

"Shall we then?" he said.

Raven said nothing. She simply took his arm in her own, and they headed for the T-Car in the garage. Robin and Starfire followed suit, only less formal while heading for the R-Cycle. Both couples exited the room, leaving Ricochet, Beast Boy, and Terra in the kitchen.

"Well," Ricochet said as he finished off his sandwich. "Think I'll head out myself. Could use some fresh air, and I seriously need a nice fat steak in me. Can you two watch the tower while I'm gone without burning it down?"

"Sure thing," said Terra as she took another bite of her sandwich.

"No problem, dude." said Beast Boy. "We can handle it."

"Alrighty," said Ricochet as he put his mask back on. "In that case, I'll see you two later. Be good now, y'hear?"

With that, Ricochet left, leaving the tower in the care of Beast Boy and Terra.

Later, at the Great Reef...

Cyborg exited the T-Car and shut the door, walking around afterwards and opening Raven's door for her. He held his hand out, and she took it tenderly. She exited the car, and they both headed for the entrance. As they entered, they went straight for the maitre d' behind the podium. He was writing into his note pad, when he noticed Raven and Cyborg standing in front of him. He dropped what he was doing and greeted them with profession.

"Good evening, and welcome to the Great Reef, the finest restaurant here in Jump City. How may I help the lovely couple tonight?

"Good evening to you," Cyborg said kindly with his arm around Raven's shoulders. "Do you have a dinner reservation for Stone, party of two?"

"One moment sir," the man said as he flipped though his notepad a few pages. "Ah, indeed we do sir. Raven and Cyborg, dinner at seven o clock sharp. Right this way please."

He picked up a wine list, two menus, and escorted Raven and Cyborg toward their table. As they walked by, many people couldn't help but stare as they walked by. One waiter even dropped an empty tray as he stopped to take a glance. Neither Raven nor Cyborg payed any mind to this. After all, who could blame them? It wasn't every day you see superheroes walk into a fancy restaurant. They finally made it to their table, which was settled by the window, and they could watch the sunset while they ate.

"Do enjoy yourselves," the maitre d' said as he handed them the wine list and their menus. "Your waitress will be here shortly."

"Thank you sir," Cyborg said as he observed his menu.

"Thanks," Raven said as she did the same.

With that, the maitre d' left.

Raven and Cyborg remained silent for a moment, each thinking of something to talk about while they waited for their waitress. Cyborg finally broke the silence.

"Decided what you want to eat yet?" he said as he set his menu down. "I've got my order ready."

"I don't know," Raven said, feeling almost as oblivious as Starfire did at that pizza place the first time they were attacked by Jinx, Gizmo, and Mammoth. "There's so many choices..." She then set her menu down on the table, a meek smile on her face.

"Cyborg?" she asked. "Is it alright if you order for me?"

Before Cyborg could answer, an all-too familiar voice echoed in their ears.

"Hello, and welcome to the Great Reef," the waitress said with fake enthusiasm. "My name is Jinx, and I'll be your waitress for the evening..."

Raven and Cyborg shot their gaze toward their waitress. Both to their surprise and shock, they saw their enemy and enchantress Jinx standing right before them...holding a notepad and wearing what every other waitress there wore, and her hair was tied back into a pony-tail. Her head was leaning down, and she didn't seem to notice who exactly was at the table.

"Jinx?" Raven and Cyborg both said in unison.

Jinx's eyes shot wide open, and her head jerked upward as she recognized those voices.

"Ahh!" Jinx exclaimed as she dropped her note pad and held her hands forward. "Don't hurt me! I just work here, honest!"

Raven and Cyborg didn't say a word, but the looks on their faces pretty much said everything. Things such as _'What are you doing here?'_ and _'Where's the rest of your group?'_

"I'm not a villain anymore," she said, seeming somewhat ashamed of herself. "I've been trying to go legit for weeks. _Please_ don't say or do anything to get me fired, I _really_ need this job!"

Cyborg and raven simply couldn't believe what they were hearing.

"Where's the rest of your team?" Raven said with suspicion. "They're not hiding in the back, are they?"

"No," Jinx said. She then paused a moment, lowering her head again. "I haven't heard from Mammoth or Gizmo for months. I don't know where either of them are..." She crouched down and picked up her note pad, standing back up afterwards. "Please," she begged. "Just don't think of me as a villain, and don't say anything to the other waiters and waitresses. I'm this close to getting promoted to assistant manager, and I desperately need this week's pay." With each word, Jinx was slowly but noticeably getting more and more hysterical.

"Okay, okay, relax girl!" Cyborg said. "Just take it easy for a minute. Rae and I have no intention of fighting anyway. We just want to eat, okay?"

Jinx composed herself, taking a deep breath in hopes of relaxing. She once again put on her fake enthusiasm that she used everyday at work.

"Alright then," she said as she readied her note pad. "What can I get you this evening?"

Cyborg shrugged.

"I'd like to start out with a Caesar salad, extra garlic. For my main course, I'll have the t-bone stead, medium rare."

"And for the lady?" Jinx said as she jotted down his order.

"Raven here," Cyborg said. "Will have a bowl of clam chowder, and the halibut filet for her main course."

"Nice choices," said Jinx. "Would either of you like something to drink?"

"Yes please," Cyborg continued, no longer nervous. "We'd love some champagne."

Jinx jotted down the last bit of it. "Alright then," she said. "I'll be back in a moment with your drinks. Do enjoy yourselves."

Jinx walked toward the kitchen, leaving Raven and Cyborg at their table. Cyborg slumped into his chair, a sheepish smile on his face. "Man," he said. "Talk about one helluva way to start off your first date."

Raven gave a light smirk. "Could have been worse," she said, placing her napkin on her lap. "She could still be crushing on you."

Cyborg smiled as he rolled his eyes. _'Man, Bumble Bee and her big mouth,'_ he thought. Ever since she told everyone about his crush on Jinx during the HIVE infiltration, he's yet to hear the end of it. He immediately changed the subject. "So Rae," he said. "I really like that dress you're wearing. You might prefer blue and all, but I think purple's your color."

"Thanks," Raven said. Though she wasn't usually up for small talk, she had to make an exception here. After all, it _was_ her first date...ever. "Starfire let me borrow it. It's the one she wore the time she followed Robin at Kitten's ludicrous demand."

"Really?" said Cyborg. "Cool. Thought it looked kinda familiar. Looks great on you too. Looks like you and Star are perfect fits."

"Not really." said Raven, slightly meek. "The back had to be tied so it could fit me, and the front had to be tightened a little so it wouldn't be so loose. Never realized Starfire was so good with a needle and thread."

"Come on now, Rae." Cyborg laughed. "She's Starfire, the girly-est of girly on the face of this Earth."

"Won't argue there," Raven chuckled.

The two lovers had long since lost the concept of their surroundings as they continued to talk to each other. They had talked about all kinds of things, mostly about their times before they became Titans. Cyborg got into greater detail on how he and Spider-Man spent time together, and Raven discussed strenuous meditations for hours on end back on Azarath. They also discussed memories and dreams, some pleasant and some not. One that made Raven feel distressed was Cyborg's story on how his first girlfriend left him after he became half machine. The way he described people's reactions to him were quite disturbing, and some caused Raven to bite her lower lip at the mere thought of it. One of Raven's stories would certainly keep Cyborg awake at night, and he wouldn't be quick to repeat it to the others anytime soon. They continued to converse with each other and enjoy their company. Even when Jinx came back with their champagne, their eyes never left their gaze. This date was definitely turning out for the best so far.

What could go wrong?

Jump City Station, train bound for San Francisco...

"_Ladies and gentlemen,"_ the voice over the intercom stated. _"Due to severe engine trouble, the remainder of this trip has been cancelled. Buses bound for San Francisco and Oakland will leave the transit mall at approximately 10:00 pm tonight. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused."_

Eddie Brock gave a light but annoyed growl. His search for Spider-Man had turned out to be a wild goose chase, and now he had to wait even longer for his trip home.

"Perfect," he mumbled. "I swear. If it wasn't for bad luck, I wouldn't even _have_ any luck."

He looked at his watch as he stood up from his seat. 7:28, nearly three hours before the bus to home would be leaving. He didn't bring any luggage with him, so he just exited the train along with everyone else. He decided to walk around the city for a bit. After all, he'd been sitting in a train for nearly five days. He could seriously use a walk to stretch his legs, and he needed some time to think. When he exited the train, he went straight to the ticket booth and purchased a ticket for the bus ride to San Francisco. He payed the cashier, and left the station at a modest pace. Upon exiting the station, he could still see that there was still plenty of daylight left. He observed his surroundings, taking in every picture and placing it in his mind.

"Jump City," he said to himself. "Funny. This city isn't far from home at all, but I've never been here before."

As he moved his gaze forward, he could see that the beach wasn't far from where he was. A walk along the beach couldn't hurt. After all, the sunset was looking pretty good here. So, he began walking toward to beach, his hands in the pockets of his jacket. While he walked, he thought about, after resting up of course, where he should look for Spider-Man next. New York turned out to be a dud, and even Spider-Man's wife didn't know where he was. He supposed he could check the island of Genosha next, but he would have to treat lightly, and get permission as well. If the Acolyte leader, Magneto, discovered Venom's presents there would be Hell to pay for both parties. One thing Magneto hated above everything was uninvited guests. Especially those that were out for blood.

Eddie made it to the beach in little time, and he walked down the sandy path. He observed the other couples doing likewise, some walking while holding hands and others cuddled with each other watching the setting sun. Eddie couldn't help but think of his wife as he saw them all, content with nothing more save for spending the remainder of the day with their love. Eddie was jealous, yet happy for them at the same time. He sighed, trying but failing miserably not to think of his dearly departed wife. Before he realized it, he was walking toward the docks.

"Great," he said with a scoff. "Guess I better head back. Getting kind of hungry any..."

It was then that something caught his attention. A small, metal object sticking out of the sand by one of the dock piers. Somehow, there was something oddly familiar about it, and something inside Eddie compelled him to dig it up and see what it was. He did so, walking right toward it and tenderly pulling it out of the sand. It was a rectangular object, and was similar in design to a walkie talkie. Only it looked much more sleek and reliable. Eddie brushed the remaining sand away from it, and at first didn't notice much. But when he turned it over to view the other side, he saw the unmistakable mark of the Fantastic Four...

"A Fantastic Four communicator?" he said aloud. "What in God's green Earth is this doing here? They'd never give one of these to just anybody, unless they..."

Eddie's head shot up for a minute, just as it dawned on him. Spider-Man was the only person that the Fantastic Four would trust with their technology. A sadistic smile crept upon Eddie's face. Finding this communicator could mean one of two things. Either Spider-Man was hiding in this city right now, or he had passed through here while on the run. Either way, Eddie was one step closer to finding him. He didn't know about this city, so he decided to ask someone who did. And who else than the one's who protected the city with all their might?

Wasting not another second, Eddie Brock dashed toward Titans Tower. If anyone knew of Spider-Man's whereabouts, it would be none other than the Teen Titans themselves.

"Soon, little Spider." Eddie said as the change from human to symbiote began. "Very soon."

Later, on the roof of Titans Tower...

Terra and Beast Boy sat on the edge of the tower, smiling as they watched the sunset. The orange glow seemed to illuminate Terra's golden hair, and the sight was beginning to mesmerize Beast Boy. He wanted to ask her a question, but he was having trouble bringing it out. _'Come on BB, get a grip.'_ He thought to himself. _'You've beaten some pretty tough villains before, so asking a girl out shouldn't be too hard.'_ He finally took a deep breath.

"Terra?" he asked, still slightly nervous. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure BB," Terra said, taking her eyes away from the setting sun and looking at Beast Boy. "What's up?"

"Well," BB started, looking for the right words to use while rubbing the back of his head. "I was wondering if, uh, I don't know. Since Robin, Starfire, Cyborg, and Raven are all out on dates and stuff, I was thinking that...maybe this weekend, we could catch a movie or something?"

Terra was shocked for a moment, and at first just stared blankly at Beast Boy. Beast Boy took this reaction as rejection, and lowered his head.

"Sorry," he said. "I shouldn't have–hey!"

Beast Boy's words were cut off when Terra wrapped her arms around him in a way that almost rivaled on of Starfire's death hugs. Her face was snuggled up to his chest, and once again she was smiling.

"I'd love to, Beast Boy." she said.

Beast Boy gave a modest smile, but in his head he was doing the mother of all victory dances. He wrapped his arm around Terra's shoulders, holding her close as the sun's last light slowly faded away. Now, both Beast Boy and Terra were in a state of ultimate bliss. Nothing could possibly go wrong...if only it were true.

"_Now isn't this just peachy."_ a deep, dark, guttural voice said from behind the two lovers. _"Few things on this Earth are sweeter than kids in love. Wouldn't you agree?"_

Terra and Beast Boy's eyes shot wide open, shivers sent down their spines at the sound of the voice they heard. It was a voice that they didn't recognize at first, but both assumed the worst.

"Um...dude?" Beast Boy said in a low, terrified voice. "Who's there?"

"_Oh, but of course! Where are my manners? Forgive me; we're being very rude..."_

Slow, ominous footsteps were heard stepping ever so close to them. Each step seemed to have longer pauses in between them, and both Beast Boy and Terra were being overtaken by dread. When the foot-steps finally stopped, they slowly but simultaneously turned their heads around to see what was behind them. To their horror, it was none other than the one person they never wanted to see in their lives, let alone in their home.

"Hello," said their visitor in a stoic voice as he held his clawed hand out as if he were going to shake their hands.

"We're Venom."

**End Chapter Eighteen**

Aggh! Cliffhanger! Venom has arrived at Titans Tower, and now things are about to go to hell real fast! What events will unfold in this story? Find out in the next chapter in...

The Amazing vs The Lethal

Credits to my writer friend Eric for the idea of flooze loaf, and thanks to my artist friend Gaff1229 for the morals Spidey taught Beast Boy.

Stay tuned!


	20. Chapter Nineteen

**Chapter 19**

**Prepare For Battle**

Cyborg and Raven, having long since finished their meal, were taking a walk on the beach. Cyborg had drove them there after their meal, and were now enjoying the starlit sky as they walked along the sand. Dinner had gone rather well, to say the least. Apparently Jinx's affections for Cyborg had died off, or she simply found someone else. Either way Cyborg was glad about that. Not that he was glad about leaving a broken heart behind him, but the last thing he needed was an old crush of his ruining his first date with Raven. Their meal itself was great! Raven had eaten every bite of her fish, pasta, and sauteed asparagus, while Cyborg's steak, potatoes, and broccoli was a taste of heaven. Cyborg's arm was wrapped around Raven's shoulder, and her's around his waist. The only sound was the waves beating against the beach, and for the moment all they cared about was each other. Of course there was plenty of time to kill before they needed to get back to the tower, so that's why they decided to take a walk. The moonlight illuminated the sand and the ocean, and only the sound of the ocean waves and their footsteps could be heard.

It was the perfect night.

They didn't say much. They didn't need to say anything. All that mattered to them was being with each other; spending time together. But still, all good things had to come to an end. It was almost 11:00 at night now, and they needed to get back to the tower soon.

"Rae?" said Cyborg. "I hate to ruin a good time, but we need to head back soon."

Raven didn't say anything at first. But she turned her body to where she was facing Cyborg, and looked into his eyes. Her amethyst eyes glowed in the moonlight.

"On one condition." she said, wrapping her arms around his torso.

"Oh?" Cyborg said, smiling and rasing his eyebrow. "And what might that be?"

Raven said nothing, but instead she closed her eyes and puckered her lips together. Cyborg knew exactly what she wanted then. Then again, who wouldn't? He had to lift her up due to the size difference between the two, and he leaned in closer to her. He closed his human eye, and dimmed his mechanical eye out to resemble a closed eye. Then, their lips touched, embracing each other as they did so. The feeling that flowed through Raven was like nothing she ever felt before, even though this wasn't her first kiss with Cyborg. Moments later they broke the kiss, looking deep into each other's eyes.

"I love you." said Raven, her eyes reflecting in the moonlight as she smiled.

"I love you too Rae," said Cyborg.

With that said, they each headed back to the T-Car parked by the marina. It was about a 20 minute walk, and they made it there in due time. While Cyborg opened the passenger door to let Raven in, he glanced around for a bit. The city was right behind him, and it was full of the nightlife of Jump City. People going around clubbing, driving around in their rides, and some even heading to work for the night shift. He glanced upwards, observing the rooftops. He shut the door as soon as Raven was in and was about to head over to the driver's side, but something caught his eye. Something on a rooftop didn't quite fit, and looked as if it were someone standing up. Curious, Cyborg zoomed in to see what it was. His vison zoomed in as far as it could, but the object still wasn't distinguishable. Fixing his vison back to it's normal resolution, Cyborg walked to the driver side and opened the door.

Raven watched Cyborg as he reached under his seat and pulled out a pair of military binoculars, and one that looked very high-tech. He then stood outside the car and focused them toward the city. He looked on a moment, and then he lowered them. His face had grown a look that was best described as a mix between shock and stark raving fear. Raven was immediately concerned.

"Cyborg?"

He didn't answer at first.

"Rae?" he said after a moment. "You better come take a look at this..."

Raven exited the T-Car and walked around to meet Cyborg, standing next to him. Not taking his gaze away from the city, he handed her the specs. She took them in hand and looked through them. Cyborg didn't say exactly where he wanted her to look, so she spent a few moments looking around the rooftops. Finally, she saw what Cyborg had seen. At first the specs were out of focus, and she had to wait a moment for it to settle.

When the vison cleared, her blood ran cold.

Venom stood on the roof top. Standing there, staring down at them. The spider insignia as well as his white eyes and glistening fangs gave off an eerie glimmer in the mixture of the moonlight and city lights. He looked at them with a brooding glare, making them freeze where they stood.. He knew they saw him, and he could see them just fine. This caused thousands of questions to race through Raven and Cyborg's minds. How did Venom get here? How long has he been watching them? Did he find Spider-Man? Did he know that Spider-Man was hiding at Titans Tower under the alias of Ricochet? What of their friends? Would he follow them if they left? Did he already find them? Did he go to them first?

"Get in the car." came Cyborg's voice.

Venom watched as the white and blue car sped off in the direction of Titans Tower, and snarled as he did so. He didn't like it, but he was wrong. First the two back on the tower's roof lied to him, and now the fleeing lovers was the next piece of proof. Spider-Man was indeed hiding with them. What got to Venom the most? The man back at New York was right.

"_As much as I'd like to say 'I told you so',"_ came a familiar voice that made Venom's blood boil from the very sound of it. _" I never was fond of those...Hollywood cliches."_

Venom scowled as he looked back, seeing none other than Slade standing directly behind him on the other side of the roof top. He stood, but this time not with his hands clasped behind his back as he was last time in New York. No doubt he was expecting Venom to attack him again. Venom turned his gaze back in the direction the T-Car went.

"So you were right," Venom scoffed. "The Titans are housing Spider-Man, but that doesn't change our mission. The Teen Titans didn't murder our wife; Spider-Man did. We will not make innocents pay for the sins of others."

"Sins of others?" Slade asked. "They are housing a murderer, fully aware of what he's done and why he's running from you in the first place. You must realize, Venom. If they truly cared about the innocent, would they take Spider-Man into their home?"

"Keep talking Slade," Venom growled, not looking at Slade. "And the next time you see your mask it will be in an X-Ray on your next trip to the local proctologist."

"I'm growing very irritated from your insults," said Slade. "But nevertheless, if your branch of justice is to be served then you must destroy both Spider-Man _and_ the Titans!"

Venom had heard enough. Without warning he leaped toward Slade with his fist reared backwards. Slade anticipated this and leaped backwards out of the way in the nick of time. The impact from Venom's fist into the concrete rooftop made a hole four feet around. Not wasting another second Venom ran for another attack. He swung his fist for Slade's head, which Slade dodged and countered with an uppercut. Venom was unfazed by the attack and retaliated with a full back-handed swing. Slade back-flipped to escape, causing an annoyed grunt to come from Venom's gullet. Slade landed with astounding grace, but was caught off guard by a strand of webbing attaching itself to his chest-plate. Venom had pulled back on the web rope which caused Slade to be jerked forward, only to receive an uppercut that sent him careening into the air and landing on a completely different rooftop four buildings away. Before he could get up, Venom had effortlessly leaped into the air from the previous rooftop and pinned Slade right where he was, leaving a Slade sized imprint into it's structure. Venom held tightly on Slade's neck, while using his superior physical strength to keep him from moving.

"We grow bored of this Slade," Venom said in disgust. "Preach all you want, but our fight is with Spider-Man and Spider-Man alone. We don't know what kind of beef you have with the Titans, but you'll just have to grill it up and eat it yourself! Whatever they may have done to anger you is no concern of ours! You do your _own_ dirty work!"

With that Venom hurled Slade toward the other end of the rooftop, Slade barely catching his balance to land on his feet with one hand on the ground, not taking his gaze away from Venom.

"See you never." Venom stated before leaping off the end of the rooftop opposite of Slade.

Slade stood back up, brushing himself off.

"_I figured you of all people would know this Slade,"_ came Doc Ock's voice from behind him. _"Attempting to control Venom would be like trying to make peace with a hungry Galactus; a completely and utterly useless attempt."_

Slade turned to see Doc Ock, standing on the ledge of the building with his tentacles suspending themselves in the air.

"I figured that the Titans hiding the one he suspected of killing his wife would be enough motivation for him," Slade said. "Obviously, I was wrong."

Doc Ock walked toward Slade in order to shorten the distance between the two.

"It will not be that easy." said Ock. "Venom is nothing like your previous apprentice, Terra Markov. He's about as far from insecure as one can get, and he has full control of his abilities. But above all, he has no regrets. He firmly believes that all his crimes in the past were for the better."

"You would think, that a monster hell-bent on revenge would take an opportunity like this." said Slade.

"I'm afraid there's more to it than that," said Ock. "Venom is not your run-of-the-mill villain, Slade. He is insane, he is sadistic, and he's relentless. Above all, his mind is as warped, twisted, as sharp as razor-wire. In his mind, he sees himself as the hero and Spider-Man as the monster. So unless the Titans interfere with his battle with the wall-crawler, Venom will have no motivation to attack them."

"And what are the odds of the Titans fighting alongside Spider-Man?" said Slade.

"It is possible," said Ock. "After all, the Titans have grown quite an affection for Spider-Man; especially the one called 'Beast Boy.' But it would be dangerous, and could foil our plan completely."

"How?" said Slade. "The Titans have held their own and proved their worth a hundred times over. So, explain to me how they could match the might of a monster like Venom?"

"Simple; the weapon that the robot wields." said Ock. "It utilizers Venom's greatest weakness, and a well-timed and concentrated blast from it would reduce even the most deadly symbiote on Earth to a lifeless puddle."

Before Slade could respond, a ringing noise from Ock's communicator came. Ock reached into his pocked and pulled it out, reading who was calling.

"What does my foul-mouthed nephew want now?" Ock scoffed as he answered it. "What is it Gretchen?"

Slade observed Ock's facial expressions change as he continued to talk. The first was a look of disdain, possibly caused by an outburst from Gizmo.

"What?...You must be joking...really? Ah, so somehow he survived the attack from the Sentry during the Ryker's Island breakout. Where did you find him?...I see...so we lost a lot of men...what? Mammoth and Dr. Chang too? That's too bad. What about you? ...I see. Doesn't sound fatal, but nevertheless extremely painful. Go to the sick bay and I'll have a look at it myself...yes, proceed as planned. Quarantine him until given further instructions; let no one get near his holding bay...yes...Very well. I never thought I would say this, but I'm proud of you Gretchen...yes, I'm with him right now. We will return to base shortly. Treat those injuries of yours and remain in the sick bay until I arrive. Ock out."

Ock closed his communicator, a smile on his face.

"Speak of the devil," said Ock. "We found him."

Back in Titans Tower...

Starfire and Robin had just exited the elevator, entering the living room of Titans Tower. Their night had gone rather well, from the dinner to the movie. The food wasn't by any means top class, but it was nourishing. The movie itself was fun, and unlike some didn't leave Starfire confused from the character's speech pattern. But their favorite part was no doubt watching the sunset. The colors of the sky at dusk always fascinated Starfire, and being close to each other was worth the entire night.

Still, there was something that Robin couldn't get off his mind. Last time the team just went out for a picnic lunch at the park, the media had a field day. Thus Robin was real gun-shy about going out into public without at least some sort of disguise. While Robin was glad that their date wasn't interrupted, Robin couldn't help but wonder what was keeping the reporters so scarce.

"Robin?" came Starfire's voice, filled with worry. This broke Robin's train of thought. "You seem troubled. I believe the proper question for this kind of situation would be, _penny for your thoughts?_"

"Well," Robin said. "Don't you find it a little weird that there weren't any reporters or anything around? Remember what happened last time..."

"Yes," said Starfire. "I do remember those that worked for this city's central source of information, but I do not particularly miss them today. Still, their absence was very odd, to say what is least."

Before either could say anything else, Raven and Cyborg came barging in from the stairwell. Both looked as if they had seen a ghost. Starfire would have asked how their date had gone, had it not been for the morbid looks on their faces.

"Friends!" she said, her face having a mixture of shock and worry. "What on this Earth has happened? You look as if you had just encountered a Yautij hunter craving the innards of it's hapless prey!"

"Worse," Cyborg in a low voice. "Where's Ricochet? He needs to know something right now!"

"We don't know," said Robin. "We just got here. What's going on?"

"It's Venom." said Raven, her voice showing the first hint of emotion they had heard in a long time. That emotion was fear. "He's here. We saw him on the roof tops. He must have been following us for hours."

Robin and Starfire turned pale. Not a second later Robin made a mad-dash for the TV and hit the power button on the remote. Immediately hit put on channel six. Already the news was completely overrun with Venom sightings. In addition to amateur photos and video-clips often showing Venom web-swinging away or leaping from one roof-top to another, there were also countless people, from kids to cops, claiming that they had saw Venom in the city. He was first sighted on the beach by the docks, and previously sighted in Jump City's downtown area. The reporters had stated that they have yet to discover Venom's motive and reason for being in the city. All of the videos and pictures of Venom were blurred and out of focus, and barely visible. This sure explained why the media was seemingly nonexistent while they were out.

"Is that really him?" Starfire asked, frightened. "It is difficult to see him..."

"_Yeah, sorry about that."_ a deep, guttural, and vaguely familiar voice said over the intercom._ "We've always been a little...camera shy."_

Before any of them could react, Venom's face had appeared on the giant screen. They all froze at the very sight of him.

"Greetings, Teen Titans," he said. "We've heard a lot about you. It's nice to finally meet your, heh, acquaintances. It's a shame we couldn't meet under better circumstances..."

Building up all the courage he had, Robin stepped forward.

"What do you want, Venom?" Robin said sternly. He mentally kicked himself for asking that. He, and all the Titans for that matter, knew exactly what Venom wanted. He wanted Spider-Man's head on a platter. Venom merely leered at Robin, his face looking as if he were raising a non-existent eye-brow.

"And you are?" Venom asked.

"I'm the leader of this team," Robin said, not saying his name.

Venom paused for a moment, but when it came to him he realized who Robin was.

"Oh!" he stated. "You _you're_ Robin, the famous Bird-Boy taken under the wing of the Batman of Gotham City. Now we remember. Sorry, we didn't recognize you without that green speedo."

Robin put the obvious insult aside.

"But nevertheless," Venom continued. "That's not a question you should be asking. We think a more, shall we say, immediate question is on call here. How about, 'how did you get this frequency in which to contact us?' That ever cross your mind, shorty?"

Robin and the other Titans were both taken aback. How did Venom acquire the means to contact them?

"Here's how," Venom said before any of them could ask. "The little green guy fixing to get in blondie's pants was, heh-heh, gracious enough to let us..._borrow_ his little communicator. Looks more like a toy walkie talkie than something a superhero would use, but whatever works."

Little green guy? That could only mean one thing. This time, Starfire was the first to step up. She flew up toward the screen, her eyes glowing green. Her fear was buried under her fury of someone harming her friends.

"What have you done with our friends?" she barked, her eyes bellowing green smoke. "What have you done with Beast Boy and Terra?"

"Feisty one, aren't we?" said Venom, evidently unaffected by the uncharacteristic tone in Starfire's voice. "Don't worry, pretty one. You're friends are just fine."

"Where are they?" Raven said, cold and stern.

"Pardon the bad pun, ice queen," Venom said "But they're just...hanging around."

The Titans slowly looked upward, and to their horror both Beast Boy and Terra hung by their ankles from the ceiling. Both were unconscious. Save for their eyes and noses, they were completely cocooned in a web-like substance exactly like Spider-Man's own webbing. Before Robin could give any orders, Raven and Starfire took action. Raven used her powers to dissolve the webbing while Starfire quickly flew up and caught their sleeping forms, one in each arm. She flew back down and gently laid them on the couch. Robin rushed to check them for injuries while Raven went to them ready to heal said injuries. Now it was Cyborg's turn to take role of the leader while Robin was busy.

"Okay, freak," Cyborg said as he stood his ground, voice giving off no fear. "What do you want with us?"

"First off," Venom started. "You shouldn't play stupid; you're not good at it. Second, we think you know _exactly_ what we want, and that it has absolutely nothing to do with you or you're teammates."

"Oh really?" Cyborg asked with a hint of sarcasm as he smirked. "And what might that be? Wanna borrow some sugar or something?"

"Funny guy," Venom commented. "But no. We were think more along the lines of, oh, what's the word we're looking for...revenge."

This time, Cyborg had nothing. No witty comeback nor a strong statement. At this point Starfire, Robin, and Raven were looking on as well, Terra and Beast Boy still out cold on the couch.

"We'll get to the point," said Venom. "We know that you're housing Spider-Man, and that he's been hiding here from me ever since he murdered our wife. So...**_where is he?"_**

The Titans were stumped. To Cyborg it didn't come as that big a surprise. Venom was a lot smarter than most people gave him credit for, and that was their downfall many a time. With all the other Titans they were all distraught and confused. How exactly did Venom find out that Spider-Man was there? Robin intended to find out.

"How did you know Spider-Man was here?" Robin said sternly. "Who told you?"

"Once again, the little green guy was _such_ a big help to us," Venom gloated. "You'd be surprised what people would say when you have the neck of their loved one in the palm of your hand."

The Titans paused momentarily. Starfire was growing more nervous by the second, and at this point her body was shaking rather uncontrollably. Raven was on edge as well, a single beat of sweat rolling down the side of her face.

"...what did he tell you?" Robin asked cautiously.

"_Everything._" said Venom. "He told us absolutely everything. From the old friendship between Spider-Man and you're friend Cyborg to the alias 'Ricochet' he was hiding under. We have to admit, this was clever on the wall crawler's part. This was easily one of the last places we would have ever looked."

"But," Venom continued. "All good things must come to an end sooner or later. So, this is what we want. Tell Spider-Man that he is to meet us directly at the city's center, and that he is to come alone. As heinous a crime as housing a monster may be, that doesn't change that you and your friends give up your lives as adolescents in order to protect innocent lives. And endangering the lives of heroes is something we aren't so quick to do. Oh, we almost forgot. If Spider-man isn't at the city's center at _exactly_ twelve noon, then we'll just have to...vent our frustration...on the people of this city."

The Titans stood silent, stunned. They knew from what they saw on Spidey's tape and from what they heard that Venom was a monster, but they never expected him to be clever and manipulative as well.

"We'll be seeing ya," Venom said in a cold voice. "Later."

With that, the screen went blank. The Titans stood silent, still, pondering what was going to happen next. Cyborg couldn't help but feel like he let his friends down. After all it was Spider-Man's enemy that came to their home and attacked Beast Boy and Terra, not one of theirs. Starfire couldn't remember a day when she felt more nervous than now. Even on that day when the Gordanians captured her before she met Robin, Cyborg, Raven, and Beast Boy she wasn't this antsy. Raven was calm for the most part, but couldn't help but feel an overwhelming feeling of anxiety over Venom being in town and virtually breathing down their necks. Naturally, Robin was taking it harder than everyone. Being the leader he always felt as if it were himself to blame for the team's hardships. Nevertheless there was little any of them could do at this point, except wait for Ricochet to return so they could tell them the news.

Starfire walked over and stayed with Terra and Beast Boy to make sure they would be alright when they awoken. Raven went over to the kitchen in order make some tea. Not that she had the intention nor the desire to drink any, she did it so that she would have something to take her mind off Venom. Cyborg and Robin spent the time pacing around the room, each lost in thought over what to do and how to give Ricochet the news.

After what seemed like hours, Ricochet finally returned. He walked in the door and noticed everyone still awake.

"Oh, what's up guys?" he asked as he went for the refrigerator, oblivious to his friends' thoughts. "Man, I had some night." he continued as he looked for something to drink. "First I met up with a bunch of frat boys and we end from one bar to another, and of course they made me the designated so I couldn't have a single beer. Not that I'm into booze or anything, but still. I managed to ditch them and I decided to go grab a bite to eat." He finally found a soda and he shut the fridge, opening his can and taking a drink. "And let me give you guys some advice. If you're ever out for the night, do _not_ eat at this diner called Teb's. Man, just thinking about that greasy mess that they had the gall to call a cheeseburger makes me wanna hurl! And another thing is-"

At this point he turned around to actually make eye-contact with them, and his words were cut off by the looks on the Titans' faces. Starfire, a mix between fear and sadness. Raven, her usually deadpan frown with a hint of anger. Cyborg, a somewhat blank expression with an added frown. Robin, a look that was best described as a mix between an 'I'm sorry' look and an accusatory 'how could you?' glare. Extremely taken aback, Ricochet was afraid to ask.

"Uh..." he said uneasily. "What's going on?"

The Titans each glanced at each other for a moment, mentally asking themselves who should tell him what happened. After much reluctance, Cyborg finally stepped forward. Ricochet didn't like the grim look on Cyborg's face one bit.

"Vic?" said Ricochet. "Mind telling me what's going on? Because this whole stoic atmosphere is starting to freak me out, uh, a lot!"

"Pete?" Cyborg said in a low voice as he motioned toward the couch. "You might wanna sit down, cause what I'm going to tell you ain't gonna be pretty..."

The next morning...

Peter Parker had spent almost an hour staring at himself in the mirror. Having gotten out of the shower he was wearing nothing but a towel. He was looking at himself, thinking about what he should do. Cyborg's words last night had caused such a shock that he had nearly fainted. And hearing about the attack and Beast Boy and Terra was like salt in an open wound. The worse part of it? He blamed himself. He knew that Venom would find him sooner or later, and that he was originally only going to stay at Titans' Tower until he got his strength back, thus going on the run again. But something happened that he didn't count on. In addition to rekindling his friendship with Cyborg, he also bonded with all the other Titans as well. With the exception of Raven of course, who never trusted him from the moment she laid eyes on him. But his friendship with the others compelled him to stay. This lead to his downfall. Now, Venom was there, in the city and out for blood; his blood.

It was too late for him to run away. No matter where he went, it would only be a matter of time before Venom caught up with him. So, he had no choice. This would be his last stand with Venom. He was finishing it once and for all. Two men go in, one man walks out.

As straightforward as it was, it was easier said than done.

He turned around and looked over at his bed, his red and blue costume washed and ironed. He dropped his towel and walked over to the bed, picking the costume up and presuming to get dressed. First, he started with the leggings, pulling them up and adjusting them so that they would fit him right. That was always the downside to skin-tight clothing; one thing goes wrong and the whole thing comes apart.

Next came the shirt. Nothing to it. Just lift it up and pull it over, adjusting it so it would stay constant with the lower half.

After that came the web shooters, which also lay on the bed. Cyborg had tuned them up so they would use the webbing more efficiently, and the last of the ten cartridges had a fiery surprise for Venom if worse came to worse. Cyborg had added magnesium to the webbing solvent, thus making it burn like napalm. And with fire being one of the two exploitable weaknesses to the Symbiotes, it would do well in a pinch. Parker planned on using them too. After the web-shooters were locked and loaded, next came the gloves. All he had to do was slip them on.

Lastly, the mask. He picked it up and held it in his hand for a moment, wondering if through it's eyes would be the last things he'd ever see. He slowly brought it over his head and pulled it over, going past his chin and down to his neck. He then turned again in order to face the mirror once more. And there was none other than Spider-Man in all his glory. It did feel good for Parker to be back in his costume, but he wished that he could have done it during better circumstances. Nevertheless, he had to do what had to be done. There was no avoiding it; not this time.

He sighed. "Well...here I go."

Before leaving his room, he picked up a sealed envelope on his dresser, addressed to his home back in New York. He then left his room and headed for the exit, which he had to cut through the living room first in order to get to it. As he got closer, he could hear talking. It sounded like the Titans were preparing a for a mission, as he mostly heard Robin talking. He entered quietly, and to no surprise he saw the Titans sitting on the couch with Robin talking in front of the monitor. They didn't seem to notice him, so he listened for a moment.

"Okay Titans," Robin said, calm but stern. "We need to provide Spider-Man with all the support we can give him, and we need to stay sharp and not stray for a second. If we all stay together, I believe we can defeat Venom just like we-"

"_No!"_ came a voice equally stern. The Titans turned in the direction of the voice, and none other than Spider-Man stood at the entrance to the east corridor. He stepped closer, walking toward where Robin was. He stood there for a moment looking Robin through masked eyes, and Robin stepped aside and sat where the other Titans sat. Spidey stood his ground, looking over his friends.

"Look," he said, calmed down. "I know you guys want to help, but this is a battle you just _can't_ get involved in. Believe me on this; I looked up all the villains you guys ever fought in that computer in Vic's room, and trust me. Venom is out of you guys' league. He's nothing like anyone else you fought. He doesn't care about small things; he doesn't want to make you his apprentice, he doesn't want to make you betray your friends, he doesn't want to steal your technology, he doesn't want to take over your home planet, and he doesn't want to lead you to the end of the world. Right now he only cares about one thing; ending my life. And if he sees any of you fighting alongside me, he won't waste a second to kill you too. This is my fight, and I can't let anyone else get involved and get hurt. Or worse, killed."

The Titans didn't speak for a moment. They just sat, occasionally glancing at each other with looks of sorrow and confusion on their faces.

"Look," Spider-Man continued, voice going low. "I know this may sound grim...but I honestly don't think I'll make it out of this one; at least not in one piece. So, in case I don't make it...I'll say my good-byes now..."

Each of the Titans stood up, standing side by side and almost completely still. He decided to start from the right and move left. First, there was Robin.

"Well Robin," he started. "It's fitting that I say bye to you first. After all it was you that let me stay here to begin with. You're a good sparing partner, and you're not a bad leader. For letting me stay here, I couldn't be more grateful. Thanks again."

With that Spider-Man and Robin shook hands, Robin's grip seeming unusually limp. No doubt the fact that he couldn't help was getting to him.

"Be careful out there, alright?" Robin said.

Letting go of Robin's hand, he moved on the next Titan in line, Starfire. Her face was easily the saddest one there, and to no surprise she was on the verge of tears.

"Star?" said Spider-Man as he placed his hand on her shoulder. "You have a wonderful gift. Your kind nature is something that's extremely rare these days, and in a perfect world people would follow your ways rather than fight. In fact if more people were like you I probably wouldn't even need to be Spider-Man, and I'd be at home right now watching the game with my Uncle Ben."

Starfire couldn't take it any more. She hugged Spider-Man, but no so much to hurt him as she did before. He tenderly returned the hug, lightly patting her on the back.

"Be careful, friend Spider-Man," Starfire managed to choke out.

"I will," said Spider-Man. "Take care of yourself, okay? Oh, and take care of Robin while you're at it."

Their embrace broke, and Spidey moved on to Beast Boy. Due to the difference in height, Spider-Man had to kneel down a bit in order to be eye-level with him.

"BB?" he said. "Being Spider-Man has given me a lot of things, but it also had taken many things away. One of them is the ability to father children, because my radioactive blood makes it impossible for a baby to survive after birth. Mary-Jane and I learned that the hard way..."

Beast Boy lowered his head for a minute, not liking the idea of a newborn passing away shortly after birth.

"But I tell you this," Spider-Man continued. "Even though I haven't been here very long, you were the closest thing to a son I ever had. And if by some miracle I'm allowed to father a child without it passing on, I'd want it to be just like you, little buddy."

BB smiled a little, and Spidey stood back up and lightly ruffled BB's hair.

"Stay out of trouble, okay?" said Spider-Man playfully.

"Hey now," BB playfully retorted. "What have I done otherwise?"

Next, Terra.

"Well Terra," he said. "I didn't know you for very long, but that doesn't mean I can't say good-bye to you too. You're a spunky girl, and you and BB seem to hit it off pretty well. Take care of BB for me, alright?"

Terra smiled. "Sure thing, Spidey." she said as she shook his hand.

Spider-Man moved on, and then came to Raven.

"Well," said Spider-Man, rubbing the back of his head. "I know you didn't trust the second you laid eyes on me, and you probably still don't trust me. But that doesn't change that fighting alongside you has been a pleasure, and I hope I make it through the day so that sometime I can do it again."

Raven just stood there. While the look on her face was rather dull, her eyes spoke for her.

"Thanks..." she said meekly.

So, that left one more Titan. None other than Spider-Man's friend, Cyborg.

"Vic?" he said. "Well, what can I say? You're the best friend a web-swinging jerk like me could have, and I'm glad that you were there for me when I needed a place to stay. Believe me, I'd probably be lost in Vancouver right now if you didn't bring me back here that night on the docks. So once again, thanks a million."

Cyborg smiled as he and his friend did their old handshake they did often after beating up some bad guys back in the Big Apple.

"No problem, Pete." he said. "It was my pleasure."

"By the way," Spider-Man said as he held up the envelope he brought up earlier. "Do me a favor, will ya? If something happens, make sure Mary-Jane gets this letter. And tell her..." he sighed. "Tell her I love her...and that I'm sorry for leaving."

Cyborg gently took the letter from him. "Consider it done, Spidey."

Spider-Man said nothing afterwards. He headed for the nearest exit, though in no particular hurry. Who could blame him? It wasn't everyday you had to fight your very ant-existence.

**End Chapter 19**

Next Chapter, the moment you've all been waiting for, Spider-Man vs Venom! Who will win? What will the outcome be? Will the Titans intervene? What are Doc-Ock and Slade planning? Find out in Chapter 20, The Amazing vs The Lethal!


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